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Digital Art Inspired by Masters of the Scene (Bitney Parent Trap AU) for Veronica - Candy Cane
SECRET QUEEN 2022 by @artificialcandycane, for @veronicasanders
This is for Veronica - angel of my dreams, apple of my eye, warrior of all of our hearts <3 Hope u love it!!!
(I. Have. Passed. Away. -V)
[WIP] Masters of the Scene, Chapter 23 Teaser (Bitney Parent Trap AU) - Veronica
A/N: Hello friends! In honor of WIP Wednesday, here's a little teaser from the next chapter of Masters of the Scene. Warning that if you're not caught up, this is very much a spoiler. XO
***
Bianca brushed a lock of hair out of Courtney’s eyes. A moment of silence passed between them, and Bianca cleared her throat, hoping that she hadn’t made the vibes too heavy. “So…bonding, huh?”
“Right.” Courtney grinned, giggling cutely.
Bianca grinned back, dimples deep, finally feeling confident that everything was okay.
“Did you, um, have enough closet space?” Courtney then asked, clearing her throat again, gesturing behind them to the walk-in. “Because if not, we could-”
“No, it’s fine. And honestly, if anyone ever complains about space in this house, you should punch them in the face.”
“I would never punch you,” Courtney said gravely, adding a coy, “Maybe a…gentle spanking, if you asked nicely.”
“Nice to know that’s on the table,” Bianca told her with a smirk.
Courtney giggled, flipping her hair over her shoulder.
“Seriously, the closet’s fine. Thanks for hanging everything. And, um, once I have more stuff, I can always add another dresser or something,” said Bianca.
“I did have another idea,” Courtney said, putting the necklace down carefully on the bureau. “See, when we first built this part of the house, I didn’t have the barn set up yet, so I had an office with a little recording space and editing bay, but…”
Courtney opened a door next to the closet, showing Bianca the adjacent office with a computer desk and bookshelves, and quite a bit of unused space.
“But I don’t use it that much anymore, so if you want…”
“Oh, this is perfect,” Bianca said, stepping inside. “That corner over there has plenty of room for another dresser, some shelves for shoes. And even some hanging racks if we need that.”
“Sure, yeah, we could do that,” Courtney said. “Or…”
Bianca looked at her curiously.
“I mean, it’s been part of the long-term plan for awhile, but before now I didn’t have a reason for it. But if we knock down that wall, we can make the whole office a giant walk-in and dressing room.”
Bianca’s eyes widened in delight. “Are you kidding? Or just talking dirty…?”
A wicked glint flashed in Courtney’s eyes as she reached forward, toying with the silky belt on Bianca’s robe. “With custom shelving…”
Bianca smirked, playing along with a breathy, “Keep going…”
“Racks with clothes sorted by type…length…color…” Courtney’s hands were on her hips now, guiding her backward into the bedroom until her knees hit the bed frame, where she pushed her gently onto her back.
“Uh huh…”
Courtney crawled forward, continuing as her fingers trailed teasingly up Bianca’s thigh, “Floor to ceiling, light-up display shelves for your shoes and handbags…”
Bianca moaned, now only half-kidding as Courtney’s lips found her pulse point, brushing over the tender skin and sending a wave of electricity down her spine. “Fuck…”
Courtney nibbled at her neck, up her jaw, then used one finger to tilt her chin down, leveling a naughty gaze at her. Bianca’s breathing grew ragged as their lips met. She kissed her hungrily, clutching at the loose fabric of her cover-up, wanting nothing more than to rip it away unceremoniously. A warm hand slid up her inner thigh, parting her legs easily.
A whimper fell from her lips as Courtney’s fingers found the edge of her panties.
Then suddenly, without warning, aggressive pounding on the door startled her out of her bliss.
“Hey! Open up!”
They instinctually sprang apart at the noise, panting.
“Ugh,” Bianca groaned good-naturedly, “You didn’t tell me you have kids.”
“Yeah, a couple,” Courtney laughed as the pounding continued.
“Dealbreaker,” Bianca grumbled, pulling her robe closed.
“Sorry.”
“Why’s the door locked?!”
“Just a moment, darlings!” Courtney called, rising from the bed.
“Good call on the lock,” Bianca muttered quietly.
“Not my first rodeo,” Courtney whispered with a wink. She walked to the door and pulled it open, the kids all but falling inside. “Yes?”
“Hi,” Danny said casually, strolling in. Adore followed with a knowing grin on her face.
“Sure, come on in,” Courtney joked, flopping down on the bed.
“Whatcha doin?” Adore asked coyly.
“Talking,” Bianca replied.
“Uh huh, is that what you kids are calling it these days?”
“You know-” Bianca began, a sarcastic comeback on the tip of her tongue, but Courtney put a hand on her leg and cut in.
“Are you guys alright?”
“Yeah, we were just thinking…” Danny said, “Wouldn’t it be fun if we went out somewhere really nice for dinner?”
“Hmmm, what did you have in mind?” Courtney asked, wrapping her arm around Danny’s shoulders.
“Well…” Adore crawled forward on the bed as well, curling up next to Bianca. She patted her on the thigh, saying, “Keep your legs closed. Don’t want to give poor Danny a lesson he’s not ready for.”
“I’m wearing underwear,” Bianca informed her. Sheer, mesh underwear, but they didn’t need to know that.
“Good for you, want a medal?”
“I know all about anatomy,” Danny piped in. “Mum bought me books when I was like 5. They came with little dolls.”
“Gross,” Adore said, wrinkling her nose. “Also, pretty sure looking at a doll is not the same as looking at your own mother’s bush.”
“Once again! I’m wearing underwear! No one’s seeing my bush!” Bianca insisted, though she made sure to clamp her knees together tightly, and put a throw pillow on her lap for extra safety.
Danny looked at Courtney, cringing.
“Yeah, you were embarrassed this morning when I mentioned boobs,” she teased. “They’re gonna talk like that every day.”
“Sorry, bunny,” Bianca said, chagrined. She supposed that the way she spoke to Adore might not always be terribly appropriate for Danny.
“Bunny’s gonna grow up fast,” Adore giggled.
“Can we just get back to the restaurant?” Danny pleaded.
“Oh yeah. We both really like Nobu,” Adore said.
“Ahh, sushi, speaking of vaginas…” Courtney chimed in, making Bianca snort with laughter.
“Mum!” Danny said, looking ten times as horrified as he was before. Clearly, he held Courtney to a much higher standard of appropriateness. Probably justified.
“Sorry,” Courtney gave a cheeky smile that said she wasn’t sorry at all.
Masters of the Scene, Chapter 25 (Bitney Parent Trap AU) - Veronica
A/N: Hieeee, please enjoy. Thank you to @tumble4rpdr for being a fantastic beta as usual!
Click here for prequels and previous chapters, or here if you’d rather read on AO3.
Chapter Summary: Oh you thought they were done fucking for the night? Lol not so much.
***
It was warm under the covers. Courtney hadn’t slept with anyone else in the bed for a quite awhile—usually her trysts were short-lived, and she never let anyone stay the night, for fear of an awkward encounter with Danny in the morning. And honestly, even when Danny was away visiting Bianca, or when she was traveling for a speaking engagement, she didn’t want anyone to stay. She told herself it was because she was just so independent, such a free spirit, that being tied down or having expectations placed on her was the last thing she wanted. Which may have been equal parts true and utter bullshit.
It just never felt right with anyone else. She supposed that part of it was the way she and Bianca had fallen so hard, so fast, in the way only young people can. It wasn’t the kind of starry-eyed breathless passion that was likely to repeat. And maybe the deeper truth was that she didn’t want to repeat it. Because if she ever found that all-consuming love again…that meant she could lose it again.
So the cocoon she was currently enjoying was…maybe not new, but certainly something she hadn’t had in a long time. And she found herself inexplicably drawn to Bianca’s body heat. Nothing was close enough. She wanted their limbs entwined, their breath mixing; she welcomed how sweaty it was getting.
They’d been dozing for a bit when Courtney stirred, shifting slightly, just to snuggle even closer. Bianca’s long lashes fluttered open.
“Hi,” whispered Courtney.
“Hi yourself,” Bianca said.
The two of them giggled like schoolgirls, exchanging a few playful, sleepy kisses. It was slow and easy and perfect, almost like Courtney hadn’t woken up from whatever dream had already slipped from her mind. All she knew was that it had been sweet and warm, like the taste of Bianca’s lips right now. Safe, like the feeling of Bianca’s embrace.
Before she knew it, the light, lazy kisses had grown deeper, more intense. Bianca gripped Courtney’s waist and pushed her onto her back, hot mouth moving down her jaw to her neck, sucking on her pulse point until she thought she might swoon.
She’d had a rough time letting go earlier, but once she had, once the floodgates opened and all the desire came flooding back, she felt almost consumed by the lust she felt, as if she’d been out in the cold for years and suddenly, miraculously, was now inside, sitting by a roaring fire that warmed her to the bone.
Her fingers dug into Bianca’s shoulders as her hands slid up to caress her breasts. She squirmed, arching up, as Bianca kissed tenderly around one nipple, and then just when she thought she couldn’t bear the torment any longer, Bianca sucked the overly sensitive nipple into her mouth.
Courtney whimpered, head lolling back as her tongue swirled around and around.
“Keep going…”
“I intend to,” Bianca said, giving her a quick, mischievous smirk before moving to the other nipple, sucking hard. Courtney gasped with pleasure, caught off-guard in the best way.
Bianca’s hands slid down, and so did her lips, pressing soft, wet kisses in a languid, haphazard line down Courtney's whole torso.
It was different now—Courtney was no longer trapped in her head, thoughts racing. Instead, she was so very grounded, in her body, that every kiss, every touch, even the faintest brushes of Bianca’s fingertips, sent waves of electricity through her entire body. It felt like she was in tune with the buzzing of each cell.
When Bianca began nibbling even lower, teeth nipping at the soft skin of her lower belly, she sucked in a sharp breath. Though Bianca had shown her so much love and care earlier, she still had a hint of anxiety about her own body betraying her.
“You sure you wanna dive on that landmine again?” she asked, tugging on Bianca’s hair.
Bianca looked up at her with a grin and proclaimed, “I like a challenge.” Then, dimples deepening, added, “Just don’t cry again.”
“Bitch!” Courtney giggled, pulling harder on her hair, but then immediately caressing her face, unable to resist touching those dimples that warmed her heart.
Bianca laughed along with her, pressing her lips to Courtney’s hip, nuzzling into her skin as her strong hands easily pushed her thighs further apart. The playfulness of their exchange eased Courtney’s fears, and she found herself once again relaxing into her touch. Her heart began to beat faster, pulse quickening in delicious anticipation as Bianca’s lips ghosted over her clit.
All she felt now was warm breath, thumbs rubbing gentle circles over her thighs. She took a deep breath through her nose, unwittingly going back to her years of meditation practice, just to withstand the exquisite torture.
Her tongue was soft at first, alternating with kisses from her plush lips, keeping Courtney breathing heavily, eyes squeezed shut, arching into her mouth. She took a gulping breath as Bianca reached up, teasing her nipples, then began to suck at the most sensitive spot on her inner thigh.
Bianca’s hair was thick and luscious in her hands, but she had to stop herself from yanking on it as her tongue lapped over her clit, spine tingling and toes curling. She started to suck, for just a brief, euphoric moment, then paused to nip at her thigh, before going back to her clit, tongue toying with her cruelly.
“B…”
“Yes, angel?”
“Don’t-”
Bianca paused, lifting her head, as Courtney’s breath hitched in her throat.
Then, when she choked out, “-don’t stop,” Bianca chuckled softly and went right back to business.
It was impossible to hold back anymore, as Courtney’s hips rocked forward, grinding her clit into Bianca’s tongue, hands pressing into the back of her head, pulling her closer. This was unlike anything she’d ever felt, the way Bianca seemed to know her body—so in tune with every shift and murmur and reaction that she went from a luxuriously slow and careful exploration to a self-assured virtuoso in record time.
“Angel…” Bianca murmured against her, and a high moan fell from Courtney’s lips.
Waves of pleasure crashed over her, drowning her in bliss. By the end, she was gulping for oxygen, not sure how long it had been. But her hands were still buried in Bianca’s soft, thick hair, and Bianca’s cheek was pressed against her thigh. Her eyes fluttered open slowly.
“Fuck…” Courtney exhaled, fingers loosening from Bianca’s curls. “That was…incredible…”
A smirk tugged at Bianca’s lips, and she took one of Courtney’s free hands, pressing a kiss to her palm. “So…takes you a long time, huh?”
“Well. Usually,” Courtney replied sheepishly, cheeks still flushed with warmth.
“Mmm…”
She looked so smug that Courtney couldn’t resist pulling her up, head shaking. “Glad you’re not a quitter.”
“Yeah. Me too.” Bianca smiled, running her thumb over Courtney’s bottom lip, easily parting her lips.
As Bianca settled against her, Courtney wrapped her arms around her waist. She could still feel the pulsing in her cunt, and as she squeezed Bianca’s thigh in between her own, it only grew stronger.
“Still hungry, baby?” asked Bianca, sliding a thumb into her mouth.
Courtney nodded, hips rocking up to create more friction as she bit down on Bianca’s finger. The benign, amused smile never left Bianca’s lips as Courtney whined, flipping them over, the sudden yearning for more overtaking her.
She buried her face into Bianca’s neck, inhaling her perfectly intoxicating scent. “So, um…” she whispered, lips pressed to the underside of Bianca’s jaw.
“Mmm?”
“Are you up for getting the strap now?” she murmured.
“Hell yeah,” Bianca said, her lips twisting into a delighted smirk, waiting less than a second more before rolling Courtney off and jumping out of bed, practically skipping to the closet.
Courtney watched, resting her chin on her hands as Bianca rifled frantically through her suitcase. “Do you wanna wear it, or should I? Y’know, for old time’s sake?”
Bianca chuckled. “Yeah, like you really spent thousands of dollars cutting your dick off just to-”
“Nothing was ‘cut off,’” Courtney said, rolling her eyes. “That’s not how it work-”
“Sorry…” Bianca turned around, hands on her hips. Given that she didn’t have a stitch of clothing on her gloriously naked body, it was quite a sight. “Are you seriously about to trans-splain bottom surgery to me? Do you know how many damn articles I read?”
“Trans-splain,” Courtney repeated with a giggle.
“Feel free to steal that,” she said.
“I will.”
Bianca winked, going back to the suitcase. Courtney couldn’t help thinking that she should really keep her sex toys in an easier to reach location. But the view of her ass was nice. She tilted her head to get a better look.
“Anyway, you’d really want to wear a strap after all that? Wouldn’t it kick-start dysphoria or something?”
“No, it’s not really like that for me,” said Courtney.
“Yeah?” Bianca held up a canvas bag triumphantly, and headed back to the bed. “What was it like for you, then? Not that you have to tell me, or get into it right now, but-”
“No, it’s okay. I get what you’re saying. A lot of girls do feel that way. But I never…umm…I never felt like my dick prevented me from…being a woman?”
“Well, that’s cause it didn’t.”
Courtney smiled, reaching for Bianca’s arm and squeezing it gratefully. “I think you probably had something to do with that.”
*
They exchanged a soft smile, and Bianca promptly ruined the moment by pulling a dildo out of the canvas bag in her hand. “Because of my own huge, detachable dick?”
Courtney laughed. “No, because I always felt like a woman with you. From the moment I told you, even when…” her smile faltered for a second before returning as she amended, “You always affirmed who I was.”
Bianca wondered if her mind had briefly gone to that fucking letter. One of the things that they’d agreed not to talk about. The thing that had kept her up at night, hating herself, ever since they fought over the summer. And if that one month of torture was bad, she couldn’t imagine how it must have been for Courtney all these years, or how she would ever make it up to her.
She blinked away those thoughts and said, “So then, um…why put your body through all that? The surgery, I mean.”
“Well…I went back and forth on it,” Courtney said. “I mean, some of my friends had considered it the most important part of their transition. And then a few of them were adamantly against it and I guess I was…sort of in the middle.”
“But why do something so drastic if you were on the fence?” asked Bianca, brow furrowed.
“Fair. That’s what I asked myself, too. But by the time I did it, I wasn’t on the fence anymore,” Courtney explained. “See, the HRT, which was actually important to me because of all the other physical components, kind of…rendered it a bit…uh, let’s just say ornamental, after awhile. So it stopped doing anything for me.”
Bianca chuckled, leaning forward to kiss her on the cheek. “I guess that’s a strong motive then, huh?”
“Basically…” Courtney giggled, adding, “Anyway, a strap gives a lot more flexibility. And plenty of cis women wear them, so…why can’t I?
“Of course you can, I just…I want to make sure you’re offering because you want to. Not because you think you have to, to please me or…you know.”
“No, I know I don’t have to,” Courtney assured her, squeezing her arm once again. “It’s not something I do a lot. Just like, when the moment really calls for it…”
“A special occasion thing?” Bianca asked, one eyebrow arching up.
“Exactly.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” she said, and kissed her cheek again, adding, “But, uh…as special an occasion as tonight is…how ‘bout I wear the dick?”
Courtney took her face and pulled her in for another kiss, this one deep and sweet, tongue dancing with hers, fingers tangling into her hair. When she broke away, breathing heavily, there was a satisfied smile on her face. She relaxed against the pillows. “Lube’s in the bottom drawer.”
Bianca pulled a bottle of lube out of the canvas bag. “Do I look like a fuckin’ amateur to you?”
*
Courtney giggled girlishly as Bianca began to slip on the harness. Her body was already tingling in anticipation, eyes glued to Bianca’s ass, which always looked good, but in the jock-style harness…fucking spectacular. So perfect and peachy-round that Courtney had a strong desire to sink her teeth into it.
But she supposed that particular urge could wait.
Bianca got everything situated, quickly securing the base and slipping the dildo through the O-ring. Definitely not an amateur. She then crawled onto the bed, her hands sliding up Courtney’s trembling body.
“Are you ready, angel?”
“Mmhmm,” Courtney threaded her hands into Bianca’s hair, pulling her down for a kiss.
She could feel the dildo against her thigh, the silky-soft touch telling her that it was a top-of-the-line model.
When they’d first tumbled into bed together, it had been with an intense desperation, a mad scramble to rip each other’s clothes off, a whirlwind that made her lose track of time and space.
Now, it felt like Bianca was intentionally taking her time, mouth trailing over her skin at a leisurely pace, clearly meant to keep her on the edge as long as possible.. Her kisses were deeper, longer, lingering on her neck, her collarbone, between her breasts. Courtney tried to go with it, to relax and enjoy the journey, but it wasn’t long before she had the blankets clutched in her fists.
She arched up, whimpering, as Bianca swirled a tongue around one nipple, fingers toying gently with the other. When she started to suck gently, the pressure in Courtney’s abdomen became almost unbearable.
“B…please…”
Bianca released the nipple from her mouth and looked up at her with a lascivious smirk, very much enjoying this power she had, this ability to turn Courtney so helpless and needy.
“What’s wrong, angel?”
Courtney said nothing, the delicious agony racing through her veins rendering her nonverbal. She whimpered again, hips thrusting fruitlessly into the air.
“Ohh…” Bianca’s voice was taunting, asking, “Did you want something?”
Courtney flopped backwards against the pillows with a frustrated pout. Bianca gave her a patronizing smile, a chaste kiss on the cheek, before turning her face, licking up her throat. Courtney was so focused on the heat of her mouth, that she must not have noticed Bianca squeezing lube into her hand—not until she felt the cool, slick wetness against her, Bianca’s fingers easing into her slowly, relieving some of the pressure.
Her eyes fell closed, and she almost, almost relaxed into it when a few strange noises made her tense up.
“What was that?”
“What, baby?” Bianca murmured, nibbling on her earlobe.
“That noise.”
“It’s nothing,” Bianca assured her, “Probably just the wind.”
“No, I don’t think so. Don’t you hear that? What if something’s wrong with the kids?” she fretted. “Should we check on them? I really need to be relaxed in order to-”
“The kids have been asleep for hours,” Bianca said. “Look at me…”
Courtney shifted her gaze, just in time for Bianca to go in with another generous fingerful of lube. Courtney gasped, wanting to let go completely so that she could really enjoy it, but the sounds she’d heard were definitely not coming from outside.
She strained to hear them again, but there was nothing. Maybe Bianca was right. She took a deep breath, blocking out everything except Bianca’s tongue against hers, her fingers curling forward. She inhaled, shakily, then exhaled in a broken whimper.
“See, angel?” Bianca murmured softly. “There’s nothing to-”
CRASH!
“Okay, that wasn’t the wind,” Courtney choked out, and this time Bianca nodded, an aggravated look on her face.
“Fuck.” She slowly withdrew her fingers, leaving Courtney empty and aching, but for the first time that night, her own needs weren’t at the forefront of her mind.
“Should we go and-”
“We don’t need to do anything,” Bianca said, rolling over onto her own back with a groan. “You relax. I’ll go deal with the monsters.”
“Wearing that?” Courtney asked, amused, gesturing to strap.
“Fuck. No,” Bianca said, reaching down to pull the dildo out of the harness and placing it gingerly beside Courtney on the bed. “Here. Just don’t have too much fun without me.”
“I’ll do my best,” Courtney laughed.
As annoying as it was to be interrupted in the state she’d been in, Courtney had to admit how much she enjoyed the sight of Bianca staggering to the bathroom in her sexy jock-strap to wash her hands. When she emerged, she was tying the belt on her robe.
Before she left the room, Bianca returned to the bed to press one more kiss to the corner of Courtney’s mouth, whispering, “Don’t move. I’ll be back in a minute.”
***
CRASH!
“Shhh!” Danny hissed, as he emerged from the walk-in pantry, arms full of all the ingredients they needed for the promised triple-chocolate brownies.
To his surprise, Adore actually had gone to sleep when they first went upstairs, while he headed to the loft. She’d joined him a few hours later, casually snacking on the mason jar of Courtney’s homemade granola while they hunted scorpions. It wasn’t long before the granola was gone, Adore lamenting her decision to not order dessert at the restaurant. Thus, the Brownie Plan was born...a plan that required, first and foremost, that they be quiet.
He glared down at Adore, who had just dropped about 20 pans while looking for the 8x8 square he’d requested. She knelt sheepishly on the ground amidst the mess.
“Oops,” Adore whispered, then held up a small square pan. “Is this the one you wanted though?”
“Yeah, that’s fine.” Danny dumped the contents of his arms onto the island and moved to the fridge, while Adore tried her best to stack the unneeded pans as quietly as possible.
Danny pulled a carton of eggs from the fridge, scanning the shelf for butter. Mum didn’t use dairy very often, so they only had vegan butter, but he supposed it would do. It was one of those high-end Whole Foods brands, too, which he remembered could be browned, and that would make the brownies extra delicious.
He took both of the items back to the island, where Adore was examining the ingredients, brow furrowed.
“What’s wrong?” he asked. He opened the cabinet slowly, carefully getting out a little saucepan, trying not to create another enormous crash.
“Why do we need this if we have the chips?” she asked, holding up a chocolate bar. It was one of Mum’s fancy Ecuadorian fair trade bittersweet 90% ones that she kept on hand for ‘chocolate emergencies’.
“We said triple-chocolate brownies,” Danny said. He turned on the stove and dumped the butter into the saucepan. “So we need 3 kinds of chocolate. Cocoa powder, chocolate chips, which are semi-sweet, and that one, bittersweet, which is like, super dark. We’ll chop it up and add it and then sprinkle some of it on top. Actually-”
“I don’t think I like bittersweet chocolate,” Adore told him, face screwed up in disgust. “It sounds gross.”
“Trust me, you’ll like it. We make these every time there’s a bake sale at school; they’re amazing. Get a cutting board and start-”
“And why is the peanut butter out?” Adore then asked. She clearly didn’t trust him.
“For the peanut butter swirl,” he explained, very slowly, as if this should be obvious. He poked at the butter with the wooden spoon, wondering how long it would take to brown it, and how he’d know when it was done. It was possible that browned butter wasn’t the best idea—the peanut butter swirl, however, would be absolutely delicious.
“Oooh!” Adore’s eyes lit up, finally catching on. “Omigod, Chef Roach! You might be a genius.”
Danny grinned, saying, “I know, right?” He turned back to the stove, where the butter had finally begun melting. “So like I was saying, you should get a cutting board and a knife and start chopping that chocolate bar into little pieces-”
“Uh oh.”
“What?” Danny asked. He turned around and froze. Mama was standing there, hair a mess, scowling at them.
“What the fuck is going on in here?” she demanded, rapping her knuckles on the wooden top of the island.
“We wanted to make brownies,” Adore said. Danny was glad she did, since he was currently tongue-tied.
“It’s 2 am!” she barked, picking up the carton of eggs and shoving it onto the fridge. She walked over to the stove.
Danny swallowed, finally finding his voice to say, “Sorry, we just thought-”
“I don’t care what you thought!” Bianca snapped off the stove and peered into the saucepan, scoffing at the half-melted butter as if it had personally offended her. “Go back to bed! Now!”
She then quickly picked up something from the ground by the cabinets, which Danny recognized as Mum’s shawl.
“Sorry, Mama! Did we wake you?” Adore asked, leaning against the island, in no way intimidated, giving her best innocent angel baby eyes.
Bianca turned around and gave her a pointed glare. “No.”
“Then…why are you mad?” Danny asked, confused.
Bianca closed her eyes, and Adore covered her mouth in an attempt to muffle a snicker. Danny looked from her to Mama, and back to her, waiting for someone to explain the joke.
“Just go back to bed,” Bianca finally said tiredly. He supposed that she’d been trying to go to sleep, but he didn’t get why that was so funny.
“I’ll explain it to him upstairs,” Adore giggled.
“Adore…” Bianca growled warningly.
“Explain what?” Danny asked.
Adore slipped an arm around him and looked back at Mama. “Kids these days…so innocent.”
“Go to bed!” Bianca bellowed, and something clicked in his mind.
Oh. His eyes widened, then he immediately turned and began to flee from the kitchen.
“Alright, alright,” Adore said. She followed Danny, at a much more leisurely pace, continuing in a sing-song voice. “Tell Mum goodnight for us…”
Danny reached out from the stairwell and grabbed her arm, yanking her along behind him.
***
Bianca entered the bedroom, dumping the items she’d collected from the kitchen onto a chair beside the door: Courtney’s shawl, her Birkin, and Courtney’s surprisingly bougie Valentino tote.
“Is everything okay?” Courtney asked, sitting up, a sheet clutched against her body.
“Everything’s fine,” Bianca said, making sure to lock the door before untying her robe. “Our delightful children decided that now was a great time to bake brownies. I sent them to bed.”
She slipped the robe off her shoulders and dropped it on the chair.
“You didn’t yell, did you?” Courtney asked.
“Of course not,” Bianca lied, flashing a charming grin.
Courtney looked at her skeptically, eyes narrowed, although her gaze softened as Bianca climbed onto the bed.
“Listen,” Bianca said, pressing a kiss to Courtney’s cheek, lips lingering before murmuring, “Sometimes you have to raise your voice so they know you’re serious.”
“Uh huh…” Courtney clearly wasn’t buying it, but she also didn’t seem too bothered, tilting her head to give Bianca access to her neck.
Bianca moved closer, sliding a hand over Courtney’s stomach and nuzzling into her pulse point.
“Side question…you don’t think they’re smoking weed, do you?” Bianca joked, and Courtney pulled away, eyes huge.
“Oh my god, are you serious?!” she exclaimed, horrified, sitting straight up.
“Well, no, just, 2 am brownies. Plus you said it’s legal here, so-” she tried to clarify the joke, reaching for her, but Courtney was not finding it funny in the slightest.
“Oh my god!” Courtney repeated, shaking her head, chest rising and falling rapidly. “They’re only 11, do you really think-”
“No, of course not, I was just kidding-” said Bianca.
“-Where would they get weed?! Mine is locked in a safe and they don’t even know about it. I don’t think. Oh, god.” She appeared to be quickly spiraling, eyes panicked, and Bianca knew she had to act quickly, because of course this would freak her out. Anyone who ever worried about custody would be triggered by the idea of their pre-teens getting their hands on narcotics.
“No no no no, I just, I was being dumb, stupid joke, undo undo undo-”
“Really? You didn’t like, smell weed on them?” Courtney asked, her hand pressed to her heart.
“No,” said Bianca firmly, adding, “Not at all.”
“Okay…”
“Don’t worry.” Bianca took her hand, kissing the inside of her wrist, trying to soothe her still racing pulse. She made a note to her future self: no jokes about the kids doing drugs.
“You’re sure?”
“Yeah, I’m sure. I promise,” Bianca said sincerely. “But…do you want some?”
Courtney let out a halfhearted chuckle, laying back down with a sigh. “…maybe.”
She closed her eyes as Bianca kissed up her arm to her shoulder, slowly making her way across her collarbone. Then, when she was finally relaxed, she reached around to grasp Bianca’s ass firmly in her hands, pulling her closer.
Bianca straddled one of Courtney’s legs, pressing a thigh right up against her pussy, admiring the way she inhaled sharply at the pressure.
“Are you okay?” Bianca whispered, nuzzling her cheek.
“Mmmhmm…”
The fingers digging into her ass, heavy breathing and fluttering lashes indicated that she’d moved on. But as Bianca eyed the dildo still lying on the pillow beside her, she found that she couldn’t. Not until she was sure that everything was okay.
“I’m sorry if I freaked you out,” she said.
“What?” Courtney asked, head lolling, necklace glinting in the moonlight.
“About the kids. I’m sorry for making that dumb joke,” Bianca clarified.
Courtney pulled her in for another kiss, arching against her. “You wanna keep talking about it? Or…” Her eyes shifted sideways to the dildo, and Bianca chuckled.
“I’ll take ‘or,’” she said, reaching for it, waves of relief washing over her.
A breathy little giggle escaped as Courtney bit her lip, eyes glimmering.
Bianca slid the dildo into her harness, adjusting the base cover against her own clit. She opened the bottle of lube, but Courtney cupped her own hands together before Bianca could pour any out.
“Let me,” she insisted, and Bianca tipped the bottle, pouring a generous amount into her hands. Courtney gave her a filthy smirk as she reached down to lube up the dildo, legs spreading wider to straddle Bianca’s hips.
Bianca buried her face into Courtney’s hair, inhaling deeply, goosebumps prickling her skin as she imagined what was about to happen. Earlier, she’d been teasing her, but now, she was in no mood to postpone anyone’s pleasure, especially her own.
She lifted her head, stroking Courtney’s cheek with her thumb, hips moving slowly to rub the tip of the toy over her pussy, and murmured, “Are you ready, angel?”
“Yes,” she replied simply.
Her eyes were closed as Bianca lined up the dildo, pushing inside of her slowly. She gasped, and Bianca paused, whispering in her ear, “Are you okay?”
“Yes, I’m…keep going,” Courtney said, her nails now digging into Bianca’s shoulder blades. Bianca examined her face, trying to discern if she was feeling pain, even pulling out slightly when she wasn’t sure.
“Do you want me to switch to a smaller one?”
Courtney shook her head, eyes still squeezed shut.
“I don’t want to hurt you, baby…”
At that, Courtney opened her eyes, a smile pulling at her lips, declaring, “I’m not as fragile as you think.”
“Oh no?”
Courtney pulled her closer, tangling their tongues together in a heated kiss.
“Does that mean you want me to keep going?” Bianca whispered against her. “You’re ready to-”
“Not quite,” said Courtney, giving her a wink.
“What do you-”
Before Bianca could get the sentence out, Courtney had flipped her onto her back, kneeling over her, lube-slippery hands gliding up her body.
“Fuck,” Bianca groaned, unprepared for how hot it was to see her from this angle, hovering over the strap, hair wild and untamed, that wanton look in her eyes.
Courtney’s fingers danced gracefully around her nipples, making her burn with need. Bianca lifted her hips to rub the glistening tip of the dildo against her clit, daring her to come closer.
A deliciously naughty smirk pulled at Courtney’s lips as she asked, “Are you ready?”
“Fuck. Yes,” replied Bianca, holding the dildo steady, her other hand on Courtney’s hip.
Courtney let Bianca guide the toy, gasping softly as it finally slid inside her, sitting down firmly on it. Her eyes closed, body barely moving as she adjusted her weight and began to roll her hips, slowly and subtly.
The pressure from the dildo base was driving Bianca crazy. All she wanted was to thrust upwards at a furious pace, to make her come completely undone. But she also loved that Courtney was in control, making her heart pound, riding her with total confidence, her firm thighs squeezing Bianca’s hips.
“Jesus christ,” she moaned, thrusting up to meet her perfect rhythm.
Courtney smiled and leaned forward, hair falling into her eyes, tits brushing against Bianca’s chest, picking up the pace until Bianca couldn’t take it anymore, finally coming with a groan, her whole body flushed and sweaty.
“I’m close, B, I’m-” Courtney let out her own broken moan. “Are you okay? Can I keep-”
“I got you, I got you,” Bianca panted, riding out the aftershocks of her orgasm as Courtney’s hips rolled faster than before, her hands now buried in Bianca’s hair.
The sound of her—whimpering and moaning and calling out Bianca’s name—was the most beautiful music she’d ever heard. Something inside Bianca’s heart cracked open, realizing how easy it would have been to lose her forever. She held her tighter, savoring how precious this moment was, how lucky she was to be here. When Courtney finally collapsed on top of Bianca in a sweaty heap, they lay sandwiched together, hearts beating wildly.
Bianca lifted her head and pressed kisses along Courtney’s hairline, fingers dancing up and down the smooth, slick skin of her back. It wasn’t until her breathing began to even out that Bianca rolled her to the side, easing the dildo out slowly.
Courtney let out a sharp hiss as she pulled out, nails raking down Bianca’s back.
“Are you alright?” Bianca asked.
“Mmm…” Courtney sighed, adding a lazily murmured, “I’m perfect.”
“You certainly are.”
A sleepy smile spread across Courtney’s face, and she sighed again, pulling Bianca close against her, arms wrapped tightly around her. Perfect.
Masters of the Scene, Chapter 16 (Bitney Parent Trap AU) - Veronica
A/N: Thank you to my star beta reader, @tumble4rpdr, for helping me get this chapter where it needed to go.
Click here for prequels and previous chapters, or here if you’d rather read on AO3.
Chapter Summary: Bianca and the kids return to the Hamptons, where Courtney learns some of the details of her breakup with Fame the night before.
***
Courtney was excited for her kids to come back. She’d missed them, and couldn’t wait to give them both the biggest, warmest hugs the second she saw them. Besides, she knew that she and Danny were flying back to LA that evening, so she was determined to make their last few hours with Adore as nice as possible. She had a glorious lunch planned, as promised, and since she’d had the foresight to do the meal planning and grocery shopping the day before, she was in great shape.
The drawback, the part she was trying not to think about, was having to see Bianca with her fiancée, something she’d been able to mostly avoid until today, when it was going to become a reality, the five of them eating lunch together like some kind of functional blended family. In a way, the shock of it was easier at the party, when she had the element of surprise on her side, and therefore a bit of the upper hand, both of them staring at her with their mouths hanging open. In that moment, as uncomfortable as it was to meet her ex wife’s future bride, she’d felt like she was in control.
Now though, after she and Bianca had been on such a strange journey, after so many moments of unexpected softness and understanding, it was going to be brutal. Because now, she wasn’t thinking of Bianca as just her ex wife anymore—she was thinking of her as a real person again, someone funny and dynamic and loving and who, when it really came down to it, she still cared about, more than she would like to admit. Last night’s FaceTime was a perfect example of that—why couldn’t it always be like that? The four of them, laughing and teasing and having a good time together?
Of course, she knew why. This was the problem. Her heart wanted something that she knew in her head wasn’t possible. Jealousy was an ugly emotion, and it was one that Courtney has always rejected. Or tried to anyway, as best she could. But she couldn’t deny that seeing them together was going to be difficult. In some way, it made her regret coming here, putting herself through all of this.
She hugged a pillow to her chest, eyes slightly unfocused as they followed the lazy circling of the overhead fan. She still had the slightest headache from the wine last night, but she knew it would probably be a good idea to get going in the kitchen so that she wasn’t rushing. She’d already been up for hours, full of nervous energy the second the first rays of sun filtered into the room. She’d showered and gotten dressed, and had just lay down for a few minutes in a sad attempt to meditate. As usual these days, it hadn’t done her much good, her thoughts racing no matter what techniques she attempted to slow them down, so she rose from the bed with a sigh.
She walked past Adore’s room, catching a glimpse of the mess the kids created while packing for Great Adventure. She pushed open the door and stepped inside, wondering how she’d missed this utter disaster before. The room looked as though a tornado had ripped through. Danny’s suitcase was open on the unmade bed, clothes flung everywhere, along with what looked like every pair of shorts and shoes that Adore owned, along with t-shirts and tank tops and accessories. They’d obviously tried a bunch of outfits before settling on the ones they took.
It was the kind of mess that Courtney knew was bound to stress Bianca out, and so she took a few minutes to straighten up. She began to pick clothes up off the floor, folding Danny’s things and putting them in his suitcase, then moving it to Adore’s little bench so that she could make the bed. She returned Adore’s clothes to her drawers. There were quite a few items she wasn’t sure about—they kids really had a lot more overlap in their clothing styles than either of them would have admitted before this summer—so she stacked them neatly beside the suitcase. Finally, she gathered the armful of shoes to return to Adore’s closet, kneeling to line them up on the little shoe shelves.
She was about to get up when she spotted a red shoebox…open and spilling out its contents, dozens of envelopes with her own handwriting on the outside. She felt a stab of pain in her chest, a voice telling herself to just shut the box and leave it alone, all the while pulling out one of the letters and reading it, just a little bit here and there, her own words leaping off the page and gutting her like a knife.
For my beautiful wife,
I woke up this morning before you, and for a few seconds, looking at your face, I couldn’t comprehend how lucky I am…
…you are my rock, and without you, I would be lost…
…I feel every kiss, burned into my skin like the most searingly perfect memory. And when you touch me, your fingertips…
…This is forever love. I know that in my soul. I’ve always known it. You are my past, my present, and my future. You are my eternity…
Courtney lowered the letter, tears blurring her eyes. She shouldn’t have done this, shouldn’t have looked, shouldn’t have allowed herself to open those old wounds. It still hurt so much, so much that it was sometimes too much to bear. She wiped her eyes, returning the letter to the envelope and putting it back in the box with the others, then carefully closing the lid.
She wondered if Bianca had any inkling that the kids had them—she doubted it. Then, for a brief second, she allowed herself to wonder how long it had been since she looked at them herself.
Don’t go there, a voice told her. The same voice that she’d ignored earlier—only this time, she’d listen. She took a deep breath and stood up, wiping her eyes one last time as she shut the closet door.
***
DANNY: Hi Mum, GPS says we’ll be there at noon but traffic’s kinda bad.
COURTNEY: Okay, don’t worry, everything will be ready. XOXO
ADORE: Also…we should probably give you a warning….
COURTNEY: A warning?
DANNY: Mama’s in a bad mood. She’s mad at us.
COURTNEY: Why?? What happened?
ADORE: Well. Fame’s gone.
COURTNEY: Gone?
DANNY: G O N E
COURTNEY: Oh, loves. She’s probably just mad. Not at you.
ADORE: No. She’s mad at us.
*
Earlier, when Courtney still thought that Fame would be there, she’d obsessed a little too long about what she should wear. She didn’t want to look like she was trying too hard, so anything too revealing or sexy or even too upscale seemed right out. But anything too casual also seemed to be a mistake, because that would imply an inappropriate level of intimacy, wouldn’t it? And then there was the weather to contend with.
She’d finally settled on what seemed like a fairly innocuous and yet put-together ensemble: a blue and white peasant blouse with soft denim shorts—not too short—that were also comfortable enough to wear on the plane, all purchased with Adore on their recent Beverly Hills excursion. It was sweet and innocent, but also stylish enough that nobody could blame her for being lazy around fashion people, especially when paired with Givenchy sandals and some simple silver jewelry.
When the kids informed her that Fame was gone, Courtney did consider changing…but wouldn’t that be even stranger? What should she do, switch out the top for something sexier? What would that accomplish? It was too much of a mind fuck—and besides, the rest of her clothes were already packed anyway. So when she went upstairs to finish getting ready, she just kept on the same damn clothes. She carefully curled her hair, then spent far too much time on her makeup, most of which was blending it out to make it look as if she wasn’t wearing any makeup. She managed to get downstairs to finish the food just in time, barely getting the last of the quesadillas onto the platter before the kids came bursting through the front door.
“MUM!”
“Hello darlings!” Courtney cried, rushing to greet them both, enveloping them into a huge hug. “How was Great Adventure? Did you have fun?”
“Yeah! We missed you though! You would have loved Medusa! It’s so scary and has so many loops! And Nitro! Yeah!”
They chattered away, overlapping, Courtney grinning at their bright-eyed enthusiasm, pulling them both in for another big hug.
“I am sorry that I missed it,” she said, holding them close. “Are you hungry?”
“Starved!”
“Well, good, because I made a huge lunch!”
“Ooh, what did you make?”
“Pepper jack and broccoli quesadillas, refried beans, street corn fritters, mango slaw, grilled zucchini, mini tostada pizzas-” Courtney laughed, watching as Danny took off towards the kitchen so fast, he practically left skid marks on the floor, while Adore’s eyes got bigger and bigger. She pressed another kiss to her daughter’s cheek, then rubbed away the lip gloss with her thumb.
“It sounds so good,” Adore commented. They were still in their mix-and-match ensembles, but at this point, Courtney wasn’t sure how she’d ever doubted her ability to tell them apart for a second—it was painfully obvious.
“Why don’t go you grab a plate and I’ll see if-”
Courtney was cut off by Bianca coming through the front door, arms laden with all of their bags, face a stormcloud of rage.
“No no, please, nobody help with the luggage,” she announced bitterly. “Why would I possibly want help?”
She dropped the bags to the floor and kicked the door closed.
“I was just about to-” Courtney began, but Bianca ignored her, stalking straight past them and thundering up the stairs. She felt Adore’s body tense up beside her.
Danny peeked out timidly from the kitchen, mouth full, saying, “We told you she was mad.”
“Yeah,” Courtney said, rubbing Adore’s back. “Listen, you guys eat, and I’m gonna go…see what’s going on with Mama, okay?”
“She’s gonna bite your head off.”
“Yeah, I know. But we have to leave soon, so…I’ll be fine, don’t look so worried. I’m stronger than you both seem to think, okay?”
Courtney reached out to tickle them, trying to lighten the mood by making them giggle before heading upstairs.
***
Courtney swallowed hard, ignoring the hammering of her heart, and knocked softly on Bianca’s bedroom door.
“Bianca? Can I come in?”
“Do I have a choice?” came the gruff reply.
With one last deep breath, Courtney pushed open the door, and shut it behind her. No reason for the kids to hear them argue. Bianca was laying in bed, one arm flung over her eyes. She was wearing what Courtney had to assume were the clothes she’d slept in—a pair of silk pajama pants and a pale pink camisole. The fact that she’d walked through a hotel like that was the biggest sign of all of her emotional distress.
“Are you okay?” she asked quietly.
“What do you think?”
After a beat, Courtney said, “The kids think you’re mad at them.”
“I am.”
“Did they do something? Last night, things seemed fine-”
“Of course they fucking did!” Bianca snapped, sitting up.
Her eyes were puffy, and without her usual makeup, she looked vulnerable and sad. Courtney’s heart broke a little, seeing her like this. It wasn’t until a second later when she realized that she wasn’t wearing a bra—well, that was going to be distracting. Courtney did her best to avert her eyes, back to Bianca’s furious face.
“They were little assholes,” she continued, “They spent all day trying to wear her down, killing her with kindness. And lord knows, they both learned that shit from you, not me…”
Courtney felt her stomach turn over, knowing that she was the one responsible for the way the kids had acted. But wasn’t that better than them being sullen and bratty? She’d truly been trying to help.
“And-and you know, I know it’s not totally their fault. I’m not crazy. But they didn’t fucking help. So. It’s over. And I’m sure they’re just fucking thrilled. And I…”
She looked away. Courtney took a deep breath, unsure how to feel, or respond. It took her a few seconds.
“Are you sure it’s over?” she finally asked, softly. “I mean, people fight, and it doesn’t always mean-”
“Yeah, I’m sure. She gave me the ring back,” Bianca said, sighing.
“Engagement ring?” Courtney asked, one eyebrow quirking up.
“Yeah…what other kind of ring would I mean?”
“Well…no, just…engagement rings are a bit…heteronormative,” Courtney couldn’t help saying, and off Bianca’s dirty look, added, “Sorry, I just…I meant, um…maybe you can still work it out. You know? And if not, then maybe-”
“Courtney…please don’t take this the wrong way, but you are just about the last person on the planet that I want to talk to about my failed engagement,” Bianca said, voice shaky.
Courtney swallowed. She understood that. If the shoe was on the other foot, she’s sure she would probably feel the same way. But as much as she’d have liked to just leave the room and let Bianca wallow in her misery, they still had a lot to talk about.
“Alright, that’s fair enough…can we just talk about the kids, then?” she asked, trying to keep her tone light, not be too pushy. “We still need to lock down the dates. At least until-”
Bianca heaved out an aggravated, put-upon, dramatic sigh, as if the weight of the world was on her shoulders. Like Courtney was asking her to move mountains instead of simply to look at a schedule on her phone for twenty minutes. Courtney had to strain all the muscles in her face to hold back the eye roll.
“Can’t this wait?” Bianca said, voice thin, really laying on the drama.
“Well…no, not really,” Courtney said apologetically. She empathized with Bianca, truly, but she wasn’t about to break a promise to their kids. They needed to work this out, and doing it in person was going to be infinitely easier for both of them, not to mention making the kids feel secure that they had a plan in place. “We have to leave for the airport in a few hours, and we promised them that we’d plan more visits. It was the one thing we said that we’d-”
Bianca held up a hand to silence her, and Courtney bristled; she’d always hated when she did that. “Yeah, I know. But I’m not in the fucking mood right now.”
“Tough!” she exclaimed, perhaps a bit more vehement than she intended. She took a breath and continued in a more measured, even tone. “We have a problem, and it’s not going away. It’s really the least we can do, after how many years we’ve kept them-”
“Courtney, I’m serious. Back the fuck off.”
“I’m sorry, okay? You’re totally allowed to be upset about your breakup, but-”
“Oh, thanks for the permission,” Bianca said, words dripping with bitter sarcasm. “So generous of you. Any other feelings I’m allowed to have, your highness?”
Courtney closed her eyes. She would not take this bait. She would not allow Bianca to suck her into this fight that she was clearly so desperate to have.
“You know what, fine, we’ll talk later. But we do need to talk, before Danny and I leave. So-”
“Do we really? Why don’t you just send me an email about it like you’ve been doing for the past 8 fucking years?”
This was utterly useless. Why was she even trying? Courtney huffed, finally letting out the eye roll she’d been holding back as she turned on her heel and headed back towards the door. It wasn’t until her hand was on the doorknob that she had second thoughts.
Because, of course, Courtney knew exactly why she was trying.
Bianca was in pain. And even though things between them were strange and awkward and messy, it didn’t change the fact that they’d once loved each other. And all that love didn’t just go away. So to see her in pain, to even know that she was in pain…it wasn’t so simple as just walking away. Courtney removed her hand from the doorknob and turned back towards her, speaking in the gentlest and most empathetic voice she could muster.
“Look…B…I know it sucks, I do, but…if two days with the kids was a dealbreaker for her, then she probably isn’t the right person for you anyway, right? And isn’t it better that you know now?”
“Yeah, it’s just fucking perfect, thanks,” Bianca replied, staring at a spot on the wall, voice flat.
“Well…”
*
“Can you hear anything?”
“No, not really, just some…No, I don’t think so.”
“Was that Mama? I think she sounds mad. Do you think it’s our fault?”
“I don’t know. I-”
“Shh!”
*
“Look, I’m just trying to-”
“Maybe I don’t want to look for the silver fucking lining right now, Courtney!” Bianca exploded. “Did that ever occur to you?!”
“I’m not sure why you’re shouting at me,” Courtney said, standing firm. She had empathy, sure, but she wasn’t about to be some doormat, some stand-in for the person Bianca was really mad at. Most of the time, though this whole shitty Divorce Era, her strategy with Bianca was to let her be right, just to keep the peace, mostly out of sheer self-preservation. But even so, she had her limits—times when she needed to push back, even if it made her own life hell. This seemed like one of those times. “This isn’t my fault.”
“Yeah, I’m well aware that nothing to do with my love life is your fault. Or your problem.”
Courtney shook her head, confused. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means that I get it, okay?” Bianca said with a groan. “It’s my problem. Only my problem. No one else gives a shit. That’s painfully clear.”
“That’s not what I meant, B. And by the way, I’m still here, aren’t I? Would I still be in this room, letting you talk to me like this, if I didn’t give a shit?!” She could have walked away—she almost had, but the fact that she didn’t should have told Bianca that she, in fact, did give a shit.
“I dunno, you tell me.” Bianca rolled her eyes again, clearly unimpressed.
“I just meant...did you really think she was the person you’d spent the rest of your life with? Honestly?” Courtney wasn’t sure why she even asked that—because she wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answer. But something about their relationship was just strange, and now that it was over, it felt fair to question it.
Bianca threw up her hands, looking exasperated, angry and exhausted at the same time. “For fuck’s sake, this isn’t abouther!”
“Well then, what’s it about?” Courtney asked, still challenging her.
“I’m not like you, alright?! You choose to be single; you think it’s fun. I just want to find someone...And I try. I try really fucking hard.”
“And what makes you think I don’t?” Courtney asked, incredulous. Yes, sure, she had fun being single. But the idea that she didn’t want a partner…was Bianca out of her mind? Apparently, yes. “What makes you think I haven’t tried?”
“Because!”
Well, that was mature. Debate tactics of a 3 year old. Courtney wasn’t about to let her get away with it though, heartbreak or not.
“Because what, Bianca? Use your words.”
“Because! Who wouldn’t want you?!”
She spat it out with a sneer, like it was an insult, so it took Courtney a few moments to register, staring at her in confusion, heart in her throat. By then, Bianca had collapsed onto the edge of her bed, head in her hands. Courtney walked over slowly and stood in front of her, placing her hands on her shoulders.
“Bianca…”
“What?” she asked, voice small and far away.
“Look at me, please.”
She looked up. Tears were staining her cheeks, her normally bright eyes bloodshot and dull. “I can’t take your fucking pity right now! That’s even worse than-” her voice broke, breath hitching in her throat as tears began streaking down her cheeks.
“B.”
Courtney could barely believe it—was it real? After all this time? Or just some accidental comment, some misunderstanding with the potential to destroy Courtney’s life even worse than last time. She had to know. She took Bianca’s face into her hands, cradling it like she was made of glass. She tilted her chin up and began to brush away the tears with her thumb. The gesture only seemed to make her cry harder, tears falling faster than she could catch them.
“I miss you so much,” Bianca confessed, in a voice so soft it was barely a whisper.
“Me too,” said Courtney, finally believing her, sinking to her knees, her shaky legs no longer able to support her.
She buried her own tear-soaked face in Bianca’s lap, soon feeling Bianca’s hands in her hair, stroking her, her touch the only thing keeping her in the present.
Finally, she looked back up, found Bianca’s dark eyes. They stared at each other for a few long, heated moments. She could feel her pulse quicken, hear the soft tick of the clock in the corner as the seconds dragged on in slow motion. Her thoughts began to race, and whirl, a chaotic flurry in her mind’s eye.
Bianca leaned toward her, but as the flurry turned into a snowball, which then grew in size and speed, Courtney whispered, “Don’t.”
As the snowball grew and grew, turning into an avalanche, Bianca continued leaning towards her. Right before their lips touched, Courtney pushed her away.
“I said no!” It probably came out more forceful than she intended, because Bianca immediately looked flustered and embarrassed.
“Sorry,” she gulped, shaking her head, trying to catch her breath. “I’m sorry, I’m really, I thought you wanted…I’m sorry.”
The idea that Courtney didn’t want her was ridiculous. Courtney burned for her.
“I did. I mean, I do,” Courtney said, a bit flustered herself. She was still on the ground, and lowered herself to a seated position, leaning against the side of the bed. Bianca slid off the bed to sit beside her on the rug, waiting for her to explain. “I do want you. But it’s just...I can’t…”
“Okay.” Bianca’s voice sounded sad. Resigned.
“No. You don’t get it.” Courtney wiped her eyes, drawing her knees up, towards her body, curling in on herself. “I...when you left-”
“You mean when you kicked me out?”
Courtney looked up at her sharply. Of course she remembered the night. She’d re-lived it thousands of times, in waking nightmares—and actual nightmares—over and over, so many times. But kicked her out? That wasn’t how she’d have described the end, when she’d broken down, rasping out a hoarse, ‘If you’re so miserable, why don’t you just fucking leave!’
And Bianca had left…but not before taking Adore, who’d been wailing on the carpet from the second she saw Bianca pick up her purse and put on her shoes. The last thing Bianca said before leaving (the only thing she said before leaving), was that her lawyer would be in touch to work out custody.
Custody.
In her mind, it was already over.
Even so, something inside Courtney didn’t give up. All the next day, the next week, even the next month, she foolishly believed that they could still recover. That they’d had a terrible fight, yes. That they had a lot of work to do. But that they also had a love worth saving. Didn’t they? Bianca hadn’t thought so.
“I…I didn’t kick you out,” Courtney said, shaking her head.
“You did,” Bianca insisted, holding her ground, sitting up straighter, voice losing some of its softness.
“No, I mean I…that’s not what I-” Courtney’s voice broke again, a sob escaping her throat. She covered her mouth, trying to catch her breath, before continuing. “That’s not what I meant. I just…I was angry. I was exhausted. I didn’t want to fight anymore, I couldn’t fight anymore, but…I didn’t mean to leave forever. I didn’t think you would…”
There was a look of horror dawning on Bianca’s face, that maybe she really hadn’t ever considered Courtney’s point of view.
“I figured you’d cool off, and then come back. After a night or even a couple of days. A week, maybe, tops. I didn’t think you’d stay away forever. I didn’t think you’d…I didn’t think you’d really just…just leave.”
“You…told me to leave,” Bianca said.
“Why did you listen?!” Courtney asked, ironic laughter breaking through her tears. “I mean, why pick that night to start, of all nights?”
“I really thought you were done,” Bianca said hoarsely, swallowing.
Courtney looked up at her, lashes still wet, head shaking slightly. “And I thought you’d change your mind about marriage counseling, and-”
“It didn’t seem like an option anymore. Not after-” Bianca’s voice broke.
“And then you took Adore, you just took her, all the way across the country,” Courtney said, fresh tears spilling down her cheeks. “Even though I-”
Courtney stopped abruptly. She didn’t want to get into it, couldn’t put it into words, the absolute heartbreak she’d felt. She’s accepted, by then, that their marriage was over, and that was bad enough, but to then lose her child too—it had been utterly devastating.
“I’m sorry.” Bianca looked down. “But you don’t…you don’t understand how hard it was to be there without you. I just couldn’t stay there, Court. Everything...everything made me think of you. Even the way the air smells in LA, makes me think of you. I had to get out.”
Courtney nodded, sniffling. The whole thing was a nightmare. It should have helped, somehow, to know that Bianca had suffered as much as she had—so why didn’t it? Why did it still hurt, just as much, maybe even more, to know that it could all have been avoided?
“I wish you would have stayed,” Courtney whispered, rubbing her eyes. “I wish we’d…been brave enough to talk about this back then. I wish I’d been braver.”
“Even now, after everything?” Bianca asked softly, studying Courtney’s face.
“I wasn’t the one who was planning to marry someone else,” Courtney reminded her.
Bianca winced and looked down. Courtney almost felt guilty; she would have, if it wasn’t true. She’d been engaged less than 24 hours earlier.
“It wasn’t the kids, you know.” Bianca’s voice was still soft, almost like she was talking to herself.
“What wasn’t the kids?” Courtney asked.
“The reason Fame broke it off. It wasn’t the kids,” Bianca explained, eyes closed, breathing almost labored as she forced out, “She…she said…”
After a few moments, Courtney said, “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t feel-”
“It was the way I looked at you. That’s what she said. When we were talking last night. She could tell that I…” Bianca finally looked back up at Courtney, teeth worrying her bottom lip. “Apparently I have no poker face.”
Courtney wasn’t sure what to say to that. She knew she was probably supposed to feel sorry for her, maybe even guilty, but she couldn't help the tug of a smile at the corner of her mouth. After a moment, Bianca’s brow furrowed, her expression turning into a scowl.
“Oh, whatever, neither do you!”
Courtney laughed, finally, the tears drying on her cheeks as she gazed into Bianca’s eyes. “I never claimed to.”
“I really want to kiss you,” Bianca admitted, arm resting behind her on the bed.
“I do too,” Courtney said, her eyes softening. “But I just worry that-”
“Oh, fuck-”
Courtney smiled, but she was unable to keep the anxiety out of her voice. “-If we open this door, it’s gonna be very hard to close it again.”
“Don’t you think that ship has sailed?” Bianca asked, one eyebrow raised ever so slightly.
“What if things don’t work out, B? I barely got through it last time,” she murmured.
“I’m still not through it,” Bianca said. “So?”
“So…do we really want to risk it?” Courtney asked, wiping her eyes with the back of her fingers.
“Yeah,” Bianca said quickly, a wry smile on her face as her dimples appeared.
Courtney let out a dry laugh as she considered it, genuinely. Bianca did have a point. What did they really have to lose?
Bianca reached out, tucking a lock of Courtney’s hair behind her ear, fingers lingering, making goosebumps prickle on her arms, every hair stand up on the back of her neck. She edged closer, slowly, enough that Courtney could feel the warmth of her skin.
“So…” she breathed, her plush lips softly parted, hesitating when they were just millimeters apart, breath warm, so close Courtney could already taste her.
They stayed that way, barely touching, just breathing each other in and growing dizzier with every second, until Courtney couldn’t resist for another moment. She reached behind Bianca’s head, taking a fistful of her thick hair and pulling her forward, crushing their lips together for a searing kiss, which immediately sent her hurtling off a cliff.
She was right—there was no turning back now. Luckily, she didn’t want to.
Masters of the Scene, Chapter 11 (Bitney Parent Trap AU) - Veronica
A/N: Click here for prequels and previous chapters, or here if you’d rather read on AO3.
Chapter Summary: Bianca and Courtney finally sit Adore and Danny down and ask them why they pulled the whole switch extravaganza. They’re surprised by their answers, and reluctantly agree to some ‘family time’ as a result.
***
“So…” Bianca began, folding her hands.
“So, we really need you guys to tell us what’s going on,” Courtney said.
Adore took a deep breath. She and Danny were on the sofa in the living room, facing both of their mothers, who sat opposite them in armchairs. After what had been a totally great breakfast—especially once Fame left—Bianca and Courtney had informed the kids that they needed to have a family meeting. At first, Adore was a little excited, even that they were thinking of the four of them as “family” was a great sign. Until they actually all sat down, and their expressions went serious.
The whole thing felt a little bit like a police interrogation—Bad Cop Bianca leaning forward, her elbows on her knees, eyes narrowed, while Good Cop Courtney sat back thoughtfully in her chair, a hand under her chin.
“What is it that you hoped to gain from this little stunt?” Bianca added sternly.
“And why did you feel like you couldn’t just talk to us directly?” asked Courtney. Though her voice was softer than Bianca’s, it was just as serious—in some ways, that was even scarier.
Adore glanced over at Danny, who was biting his lip. She knew that he expected her to speak first, to take the lead, but as much as they’d discussed this, she wasn’t actually sure what she should say. She wasn’t used to being tongue-tied; she just cared so much about saying the right thing, the thing that would make them understand, that it was paralyzing. After a few excruciating seconds, she was about to just start babbling anyway when her brother surprised her.
“Di-did you know that last night was the first time we’ve seen you in the same room together?” he asked, swallowing hard. “At least, that either of us can remember?”
“I…” Courtney began, then faltered, looking slightly ashamed. “No. No, I didn’t…realize that.”
Adore could see in her eyes that she was starting to beat herself up. And if she knew Mama, she was doing the same thing behind her serious poker face.
“We’re not trying to make you feel bad,” Adore told them. “But we want to be a family.”
“Adore-” Bianca said, clearly gearing up for a whole lecture.
“I know what you’re gonna say,” Adore cut in, pleading, “But I just mean…sometimes. Can’t we sometimes all spend time together? Once in awhile?”
“Breakfast was great, right? So…you can do it,” said Danny, a hint of desperation creeping into his voice. “We love you both, and we just want…”
He looked down, and Adore could see the tears shimmering in his eyes. She reached out and grabbed his hand, then looked back at her mothers, challenging, sitting up a little straighter.
“You asked us what we want. This is what we want,” she said adamantly. “More time together, more time with you. Both of you.”
Bianca and Courtney shared a glance, and Courtney gave an almost imperceptible nod.
“We can try. If that’s what you guys really want,” Bianca said.
“Yes! We’re not saying that you have to be best friends or anything, but…it would be really cool if we could have some holidays together,” said Adore.
“Maybe even take some family vacations?” Danny offered. “If we’re out of town, it would be neutral territory.”
“And we want more visits,” Adore cut in to add, feeling like this was the time to put everything out there. “With both of you. Longer ones. And some one on one time, but also more time for Danny and I to be together.”
“Listen, my loves. We can look at the visitation schedule, but we do live on opposite sides of the country,” said Courtney.
“We didn’t choose that,” Danny said, voice breaking, and Adore squeezed his hand. She could already see the waterworks spreading, as Courtney dabbed the edge of her eyes with her sleeve.
“We’ll do better, okay?” Bianca said. “And we can also be better about calling and FaceTiming. Maybe we can have a regular schedule.”
Courtney looked over at her with a grateful smile, and that’s when Adore saw the perfect opening.
“Mum, can you and Danny stay here for the week?” she asked, giving Courtney her best puppy eyes.
“I-I don’t know, honey. A week is a long time, and we both have work-”
“But you’re off until the end of the month,” Adore reminded her. “That’s what you said.”
“And Mama’s off too this week,” Danny supplied helpfully.
“It’s a real imposition, love-” Courtney began, but Bianca interrupted.
“Well-”
They exchanged another uncertain look. Adore could feel her heart in her throat, waiting for an answer. Things were already going so well. They were getting along, and seemed to be totally united, and if they could just have a few more days, Adore was certain that they’d start to remember just how much they loved each other. Her eyes moved from one to the other, just barely catching Bianca give a little shrug before they both turned back to the kids.
“Look, let’s just…see how it goes, okay?” Courtney asked.
“Yes!” Adore cried, jumping up and pumping her fist. She ran to them, throwing her arms around both of them, Danny close at her heels.
***
At first, Courtney was a ball of nerves. What business did she have pretending that she could act normal around Bianca? It had been hard enough the first day, the first morning, and she’d nearly crumbled on multiple occasions. The whole thing was a recipe for disaster. But, it was for the kids, so she forced herself past the anxiety that felt like it was eating her stomach from the inside.
Because they were so, so happy. And seeing the joy on their faces all day made any suffering worth it.
The strange part was that after awhile, it didn’t actually feel like suffering. That gnawing in her stomach subsided, the nervous twisting of any tissue or napkin that ended up in her hands. She even stopped biting the skin on her cuticles and just began to have a good time.
Turned out, the twins’ happiness was infectious. They played a giggly game of rock, paper, scissors to determine who would choose their activities for the day. And when Danny won, Adore didn’t even pout or roll her eyes—she just went along with his suggestion of the bowling alley with a spring in her step.
Bianca was a terrible bowler, and she knew it, but she was also highly competitive, and took every swing incredibly seriously. Soon, they were all having a hard time keeping a straight face every time she missed and let loose a string of curse words that made the family in the lane next to them toss angry, dirty looks over their shoulders.
After her fourth gutterball, and fourth hilariously angry diatribe, Adore called out, “Watch your fucking language, this is a family activity!”
“This is a stupid fucking family activity, who’s idea was this anyway?” Bianca grumbled, sitting down heavily in one of the hard plastic chairs.
Danny raised his hand, a cheerful smile on his face, proclaiming, “Mine.”
“Oh…right.” Bianca reached out for Danny, who slid closer and rested a head on her shoulder as Adore got up to take her turn.
“I think you’re really improving,” said Courtney. “That last swing almost knocked one down.”
“Ha ha ha, fuck you,” Bianca said, and Courtney couldn’t help bursting into giggles, especially when she saw the dimples appearing in Bianca’s cheek.
It was getting harder and harder to remember that they’d been estranged for so much longer than they’d been together.
After the game, the four of them squished into a booth in the adjacent diner for fries and grilled cheese.
“Enjoy this junk while you can,” Courtney warned. “Because I went shopping this morning, and tonight I’m gonna make everyone a delicious and healthy dinner. Seitan kebabs with beet slaw and roasted Brussels sprouts.”
Bianca laughed, shaking her head. “Are you planning to disguise this nutritious food in a pizza? Because that’s the only way Adore will eat it.”
Adore looked up from her phone, where she’d been furiously typing something, brow furrowed.
“I like Brussels sprouts,” she said.
“Since when?”
“Since I tried the way Mum makes them,” she said, going back to her phone.
Courtney looked at Bianca with a victorious smirk, biting down on a French fry.
“Well…alright then.”
“Danny’s not allowed to eat them though,” Adore said.
“Why not?” Danny asked.
“Because I don’t want you farting in my bed all night. So either skip the sprouts, or you can sleep on the couch.”
Danny huffed, crossing his arms, although Courtney could see the sparkle in his eyes.
“Listen, the couch is better than your room in the city,” Adore added.
“What’s wrong with his room in the city?” Courtney asked her, unable to suppress her curiosity.
“Nothing’s wrong with it,” Bianca said, the exact same time Adore explained, “It’s a closet.”
“It’s not a closet! And put down your phone, we’re supposed to be having family time,” Bianca reminded her, “that youdemanded.”
“I’m working on a thing, for the family,” Adore said, then turned to Danny. “Don’t you think it’s a closet? There’s no window.”
“Well, it’s small, but…it’s cozy,” Danny said unconvincingly.
“Cozy for a jail cell,” Adore replied with a chuckle.
Bianca’s cheeks were starting to darken with embarrassment. “Adore, knock it off. You’re gonna make Courtney think that I can’t take care of you guys-”
“It’s okay,” Courtney cut in. “I understand how real estate works in New York.”
“Right.” Bianca caught Courtney’s eye, shoulders relaxing.
“Um…Mama, did you tell Adore about the expansion? And the new stores you’re opening?” Danny asked.
“New stores?” Adore lifted her head. “Where?
Courtney slipped an arm around his shoulders, proud of him for seeing how uncomfortable Bianca was and helping to build her up.
“Well, yeah, we’re tripling production next year,” Bianca said, clearly thrilled but trying her best to appear casual, as if tripling production on a clothing line was just a normal part of business that happened all the time, “so the idea is to open stores in a couple of new cities, just as a kind of marketing thing.”
“Tripling?! Wait, is one of the new stores gonna be in LA?!” Adore asked, now excited.
“Could be,” Bianca nodded and took a sip of her Diet Coke, the picture of cool nonchalance once again.
Adore looked across the table at Courtney, asking, “Did you hear that? Isn’t that awesome?!”
“Yeah, I heard,” Courtney said, shooting Bianca a grin. “Pretty impressive.”
Bianca smiled back, then cleared her throat and asked, “So…what do you guys want to do tomorrow? Please, no more sports.”
“Is bowling really a sport?” Courtney wondered.
“Yeah, there’s a ball and I hate it,” Bianca replied.
“You’re just mad that you suck,” Adore laughed, stealing a fry from her plate.
“Exactly!”
“Don’t worry, Mama, we’re not planning on any more athletic activities,” Danny promised.
“Good. So…what do you think? Beach day, maybe?”
“Well…” Adore and Danny exchanged a conspiratorial look, and then Adore continued, “Me and Danny are actually planning something kinda special.”
“But it’s a surprise,” Danny added.
“A surprise?” Always a skeptic, Bianca’s eyebrow immediately shot up.
“Yeah, so it would be really helpful if you could like, stay out of the house all day,” said Adore.
“All day?!”
Courtney was wondering the same thing. What could they possibly be up to?
“Well like…12 to 6.”
“Maybe 11 to 6,” Danny corrected.
“Okay, yeah, 11 to 6,” said Adore, then turned to Courtney and added, “Also you should know that it’s gonna be a cheat day. A little bit of dairy and some seafood.”
“Oh god,” Bianca moaned, putting a hand to her forehead. “You’re cooking? You’re gonna burn down my house, aren’t you?”
Danny laughed and reached across the table to pat her hand. “You can trust us! We promise. But we do need you to leave.”
“Where are we supposed to go all day?” Courtney asked.
“Well…you could go to the beach like Mama just said.”
“Or! There’s a very nice spa less than a mile away.” He suddenly whipped a brochure out of his cargo shorts and unfolded it, showing it to Courtney. “See?”
“How long have you been planning this?”
“Awhile,” Adore said.
“Yeah guys, I don’t know about…ooh, they have shiatsu and hot stone massages.”
“See? You should treat yourself. You deserve it,” Danny encouraged.
“You guys…are such manipulative little monsters,” Bianca said, and off Adore’s shrug, added, “Good thing I love a spa day.”
She sat back with a grin, which faltered just slightly when Courtney caught her eye. Would they really be able to get through a day alone together? Courtney took a deep breath, resigning herself to the fact that she needed to at least try. After all, she wasn’t going to be the one who dashed her kids’ hopes.
***
“Goodnight, Mum,” Adore said, hugging Courtney tightly.
“Goodnight, my love. Sleep well.” Courtney kissed her on the top of her head.
On the other side of the bed, Bianca was saying goodnight to Danny, and Adore couldn’t help but revel in the warmth of this very basic scene—her brother at her side and both of her moms putting them to bed. She knew they were probably too old for this kind of thing, but for once, that didn’t stop her. She just sighed happily, leaning on Courtney’s shoulder and inhaling her scent.
“Can’t wait until you see what we have planned tomorrow,” Adore murmured, and Courtney giggled.
“I’m sure it’ll be marvelous,” she said, giving Adore one final kiss before releasing her.
Even just thinking about it, Adore’s stomach filled with nervous, excited butterflies. She thought the plan was pretty magical—but would her moms agree?
Courtney and Bianca both began to walk around the bed to say goodnight to the other twin, leading to a very cute moment of them awkwardly trying to get around each other without touching.
Adore snuck a sly glance at Danny, who was grinning like a loon, clearly delighted by the whole moment too. She looked back at Bianca, who was doing her typical thing when she tried to hide her nerves, running her fingers through her hair.
“Hi, Mama…”
“What are you smiling about?” Bianca asked, eyes narrowing suspiciously.
“Nothing. I’m just…happy to be with you.”
“Mmmhmm…” Bianca sat on the edge of her bed. “You gonna tell me what’s going on tomorrow?”
“No.”
“Is it gonna piss me off?”
“I hope not,” Adore said honestly, then added, “Actually, I think you’ll love it.”
“Hmm.”
“Because you love me, right?”
Bianca grinned, dimples deep in her cheeks as she pulled Adore in for a big hug. “With all my heart, pussycat.”
***
“So…what exactly are we looking for here?” Shangela asked, following Danny through the outlet mall. As requested, she’d picked him up at 9 am on the dot. When Bianca tried to ask her what was going on, all she said was that she was ‘just the driver,’ pulling away before Bianca could ask any more questions while Danny grinned mischievously, waving.
“Well…” Danny wasn’t exactly sure how much of the plan Adore had revealed to Shangela, but he knew that she was one of Bianca’s oldest friends, and someone he could trust. “We’re kind of trying to recreate…a night.”
“Uh huh…” Shangela raised an eyebrow, clearly waiting for Danny to continue.
“Um…this date that they had. It was when they both came out. And we want to get clothes that are like…what they were both wearing.”
Shangela was silent for a few moments, then nodded. “Okay, so…who’s first?”
“Mum,” Danny said, smiling. “She was wearing a light pink dress.”
“Ah…what about this one?” Shangela asked, holding up a nearby dress, but Danny shook his head.
“It’s the wrong pink. See, the one she has here is lighter, and it’s…” Danny showed her his screen, zoomed in on a picture of Courtney. “It’s almost peach.”
“Okay. Pale peachy-pink it is,” Shangela said with a grin, turning to another rack.
“We just…really want it to be right,” Danny explained. “We want them to really remember that night.”
“I understand,” Shangela said simply. After a few moments, she cleared her throat and added, “You know…when they first split up, I didn’t really believe it.”
“You didn’t?”
“No.” She shook her head. “They just seemed so happy to me, so perfect for each other. And I know your mama, maybe better than anyone else…they really loved each other. I assumed it was just a fight, and they’d figure things out. For a long time, I assumed that they’d get back together. Hoped that they’d get back together.”
Danny was quiet, trying to collect his thoughts. On the one hand, it was so nice to know that Shangela recognized how special their relationship was, and knowing that she was rooting for them to get back together affirmed that he and Adore just might be on the right track after all. On the other hand…
“You’re using a lot of past tense,” he said softly.
Shangela turned back towards him, pulling him in for a hug before placing her hands on both of his shoulders.
“I’m glad that you guys have hope. I think it’s great. But…I just don’t want you to be too crushed if it doesn’t work out. Because it’s been a long time. And…you know…Mama’s engaged now.”
Danny nodded. She was right, of course. It was a longshot. They knew that already. He tried not to feel too deflated.
“Hey! What about this one?!” Shangie suddenly exclaimed, pulling another dress off the rack.
Danny looked at it—the perfect color, the right kind of fabric and even the right length. It could certainly work.
“Yes!” he cried, then looked up at Shangela with a grateful smile. “Thank you.”
“No problem, kiddo.” Shangela said, slinging an arm around his shoulders. “Why don’t we get a couple of sizes and you can return the ones she doesn’t need?”
***
Courtney took a deep breath, trying to stop her hands from shaking as she tied her robe. What was wrong with her? Why was she suddenly so self-conscious? It was never like this before—if anything, her friends accuse her of being an exhibitionist. And as Willam said all the time, ‘If you’ve got it, flaunt it.’
Of course, Willam was also the one who tried to convince her to get double-D tits back when she was contemplating surgeries.
“Come on! You’re going under the knife anyway, why not leave with a set of huge knockers? That’s what I’d do!”
“Well Bill, you and I are very different people.”
After considering all of her options, she opted out of any top surgery at all. Instead, she stuck with the boobs that grew on their own—after two years on HRT, she had a generous B cup, and that felt like plenty. Bianca certainly hadn’t ever complained.
It wasn’t self-consciousness, she realized, once she thought about it some more. It was the idea of being naked in the same room as Bianca—even turned away, facing the lockers. Even though they would be putting on robes to walk around. The intimacy of it freaked her out. Which was why she pretended to be answering some urgent text messages while Bianca changed, why she never once looked up at her. Why she’d waited until she’d left the changing room to take off her own clothes.
She headed towards the spa facilities. It was a huge place, and with any luck, they could keep a safe, comfortable distance from each other all day. But just her luck…as she turned the corner, Bianca was rising up out of the jacuzzi.
Courtney tried to look away quickly, but found herself unable to. The clingy white bikini had gone translucent in the water, and Courtney didn’t know how it was possible, but she was even sexier than she’d been back when they were together, luscious curves making Courtney’s vision blur. This was why she’d avoided seeing her change before…because that intense physical attraction that had been there before was back, so strong it nearly knocked her over. She could almost feel the wet fabric of Bianca’s bikini strings in her hands, pulling them until the bathing suit fell to the ground, pressing her against the cool marble walls.
It wasn’t until she’d paused to catch her breath, staring at the tile floor, that Courtney realized what she should have earlier.
Bianca was wearing a bathing suit. Everyone here was wearing a bathing suit.
Courtney felt like kicking herself. For years, she’d been going to a spa in Santa Monica, where nudity was basically a requirement, all members walking around without a stitch of clothing. But this wasn’t Santa Monica, this was the Hamptons. Of course ladies in the Hamptons would wear bathing suits in the spa. She was frankly surprised they weren’t in strings of pearls.
She backed out of the spa area, panicking. Normally, this would be a no-brainer—her usual underwear was black cotton panties and soft bras that could easily pass for a bathing suit. But of course, today she’d opted for a red lace thong and matching embroidered bra, both unmistakably lingerie. Why had she done that?
Who was she kidding, she knew why she did it—in case Bianca happened to catch a glimpse of her changing, that was why. In her haste to run back to the changing area, she nearly knocked over some poor girl attempting to restock the towels.
“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry!” she exclaimed. “I just, I realized that everyone wears bathing suits here and in my spa at home, we-”
“Do you need a suit from the gift shop?” the girl asked calmly, catching onto the situation right away like some kind of guardian angel.
“Yes! Omigod, yes, where-”
“I’ll bring a selection right away,” she said, checking the locker number on the key around Courtney’s wrist.
It only took Courtney a few minutes to change—she chose a paisley-print bikini that was more cute than sexy—but another five to stop her heart from hammering in her chest. By the time she made it back to the jacuzzi, Bianca was nowhere to be seen, and she breathed a sigh of relief as she sank into the water.
For the rest of the day, they managed to stay out of each other’s space, seeing each other only in passing in between getting scrubbed and buffed and soaked and rubbed. By the time Courtney had her final service, which was a 90 minute hot-stone massage, she was almost feeling relaxed. Afterwards, she lay on a chaise lounge in the quiet room, sipping some peppermint tea.
When she felt a hand on her shoulder, she nearly lept out of her seat.
“Sorry, sorry,” Bianca said, trying to keep her voice soft. “But we should probably shower and change. It’s almost 5:30, and I’m kind of freaking out about what the kids have gotten up to.”
“Yeah, of course,” Courtney said. “I can be ready in about 20 minutes, is that okay?”
“That’s perfect,” Bianca said, giving her a smile. “In fact, I’ll be generous and throw in an extra…7 minutes, if you want.”
“Wow. Thanks,” Courtney laughed, finishing the last of her tea, wondering why they’d avoided each other all day. But she also supposed it had been safer that way.
***
The ride home from the spa was quiet, both Bianca and Courtney feeling relaxed and maybe a bit afraid to break the peace. When Bianca pulled the car into the driveway, the first thing she saw was Danny, waiting outside the front door. He ran up to greet them, and then gave them solemn instructions to go directly upstairs to their rooms, where they were supposed to get ready and then await further instructions.
“No coming out until we say!” he insisted.
“You know this is my house, right?” Bianca asked, but went along with the plan, since at least there were no fire trucks or ambulances around yet.
“Your wardrobe for the night is on your bed.”
“Is the surprise a costume party?” Courtney asked, perking up.
“Mmm…no. But we do want you to wear what we put out for you. You can choose your own underwear.”
“Wow, thanks, how generous of you,” Bianca said drily.
“We’ll come get you when everything’s ready,” Danny said.
The outfit laid out on her bed was black pants—rather unseasonal for mid August, but she decided to be a good sport about it—with a pair of strappy black stilettos, a blue top that she didn’t recognize, and some chunky silver and black jewelry. She had to hand it to the kid; he wasn’t bad at styling. She got dressed and put on a simple face of makeup—just the essentials. She was finished and just beginning to get antsy when Adore knocked on her door, telling her it was time to come out.
When she saw Courtney, she knew immediately what they were up to. She was in a simple, pale pink silk dress, one strand of freshwater pearls around her neck. The memories came flooding back instantly. She looked at Courtney’s face, trying to see if she knew, too, but all she got was a small smile, no indication that she’d caught on.
Then, they followed Adore outside. The deck was covered in colorful Chinese lanterns and fairy lights, one little table set up, complete with a bucket of pink champagne and something under a cloche in the center. Courtney inhaled sharply, turning to look at Bianca with wide eyes, recognition clear as day all over her face, pink creeping into her cheeks.
“Did you know they were-”
“No.” Bianca shook her head.
“Please have a seat,” Adore said brightly, as Danny came out through the other doors, from the kitchen, holding a tray.
Courtney was hesitating, and Bianca resisted the urge to guide her forward with a hand on the small of her back. Instead, she took a deep breath and went to the table, pulling out her chair for her. Courtney sat down gingerly just as Danny placed two salad plates down in front of them.
“Your first course is an arugula and avocado salad,” he proclaimed.
“And,” Adore added, pulling a cloche from the center of the table to reveal a platter of raw oysters on ice. “Oysters with a chili ginger sauce, to share.”
“Guys-” Courtney began, looking like she would rather be boiled alive than spend one more second at the table.
“Enjoy!” Danny exclaimed, taking Adore’s hand and running back towards the kitchen.
Bianca looked from the oysters back up to Courtney’s face, which still seemed to be in a state of shock.
“I…”
“I know.” Bianca let out an incredulous chuckle, shaking her head. “It seems that the ulterior motive for this whole switch nonsense is, uh…becoming clearer.”
“Yeah.” Courtney swallowed. “I mean, I guess it makes sense…that they just want-”
“Right. We should just…go along with it, right? I mean they did…put a lot of effort into it.” She stuffed a bite of salad into her mouth, then looked back up at Courtney, trying to gauge her feelings.
“They did, but…so you don’t mind? Having our faces smashed together like Barbie dolls?” she asked. She was twisting a napkin in her hands, cheeks still red.
Bianca paused, taking a breath before saying, “We’ll be okay. It’s one night, right?”
Courtney nodded, green eyes locked with hers for a few moments, and Bianca swore she could feel her heart in her throat.
Then Courtney looked down again, shaking her head. “Oysters, though?”
Bianca began to laugh, deciding that this was the perfect time to crack open the alcohol. They were going to need it. She poured glasses of champagne for both of them, then lifted her own in a toast.
“To um…reliving a pretty great night.”
Courtney’s expression shifted slightly, and then Bianca found her own cheeks grow blazing hot.
“Not all of it, just, I mean…uh,” she stammered out, feeling like an idiot.
“Well that’s good…’cause I think we have our hands full with these two,” Courtney said, her face now wearing a cheeky grin. Apparently Bianca embarrassing herself had a soothing effect on her.
“Just fucking toast me,” Bianca groaned.
“Cheers.” Courtney clinked their glasses together, then took a very large swig of champagne.
“My point is…there’s worse nights they could’ve chosen. This one was….”
“I know.”
They exchanged a look, Courtney holding her gaze just a beat too long before awkwardly averting her eyes, picking up her fork. Bianca swallowed down another gulp of champagne, wondering if the rest of the night was going to make her feel as strange as she felt right then.
Masters of the Scene, Chapter 19 (Bitney Parent Trap AU) - Veronica
A/N: Thank you so much to @tumble4rpdr for being an incredible beta, and to both @aqalbatross and @artificialeevee for their help with the video game speak.
Click here for prequels and previous chapters, or here if you’d rather read on AO3.
Chapter Summary: A month later. Courtney gets a surprise.
***
Topanga Canyon, California. September.
Courtney knelt in the garden, stabbing the cultivator into the ground, over and over, trying to loosen the soil enough to grab ahold of the weeds that were attempting to choke her poor onions. She attacked the ground, the weeds, with a violence that most people would probably think was unlike her, but she had to get the anger out somehow, and weeds and dirt seemed like a pretty benign target.
She’d been out there since before sunrise, harvesting and planting and trying to get as much done as she could while the air was still cool and misty. If it was up to her, she’d be in the garden every day, but that just wasn’t usually possible during the week. The weekends, though, that was her time. It was a good way to focus, to try and keep her mind on a task, rather than spinning off the way it had been doing ever since she’d gotten into that car and pulled away from her daughter, watching Adore’s sad little face get smaller and smaller until she disappeared around the curve of the road.
She hated leaving Adore, especially like that. And now she was back in school, and Courtney wished more than anything that she’d been wrong about how hard this school year was going to be. It wasn’t Bianca’s fault—New York Fashion Week, and the rest of September, was the most important time of the year for her, business-wise. Nobody expected her to be sitting down with Adore and helping her with homework every day. That’s why she had after-school help, and tutors, and why Courtney had completely rearranged her own schedule to be available on FaceTime when Adore got home in the afternoons.
But it didn’t seem to matter. The workload was insane; granted, Courtney hadn’t finished University herself, but she couldn’t do half of what they were asking of Adore at that godforsaken school. And Adore had convinced herself almost immediately that everything was too hard, that she was stupid, that she’d never be able to keep up with her classmates or the rigorous level of college prep instruction that was expected of her.
Adore’s psychiatrist wanted to increase her dosage of Adderall and put her on an antidepressant, but Bianca wanted to wait and see how she adjusted once she got used to the new schedule and teachers. Courtney wanted to cry and scream because she couldn’t fucking hold her child and kiss her and tell her that nothing, nothing, nothing was wrong with her and that fucking school shouldn’t be putting so much pressure on her in sixth fucking grade.
She stabbed the soil one more time, tears falling that she brushed away with her gloved hand, leaving behind streaks of dirt on her face, no doubt.
Her frustration wasn’t just about what a hard time Adore was having. That was horrible, and of course she wished she could be there for her in person, more than just FaceTiming her, which she gladly did, as much as possible. It was also about how difficult it was to nail down visitation dates with Bianca.
She understood that she was busy right now, but she got the distinct impression, especially in the last few weeks, that she was being brushed off. The whole thing was intensely frustrating, when all she wanted was a few confirmed long weekends with both children, and all Bianca had to do was say “yes” in writing. Surely no one was too busy to check a calendar and type a 3 letter word, right?
Courtney was busy too: she had three different YouTube channels, which involved research, brand relationships, collabs, scripting, filming, editing, and approvals; her podcast; the studio and creative partnerships; overseeing her nonprofit, which included the hands-on work she did at the Carlotta House; her advocacy and activism work; appearances and social media content that she had to keep up with to stay ‘relevant’ as well as producing branded content; being on the PTA at Danny’s school. She also had employees, she also managed teams of people and multiple projects with multiple timelines. And just like Bianca, she’d been a single mother since their kids were 3 years old.
Still, she managed to find the time to respond to emails about their children.
So she just had a hard time believing that Bianca was too busy to respond—that couldn’t be the answer. There had to be another explanation. Was it a power thing? Was she punishing Courtney for their fight? Because that would be a new low, a new level of pettiness—they’d managed, somehow, not to let their children suffer because of their own bullshit so far (at least not directly), but this would make the kids suffer. They missed each other, and wanted to see each other and wanted to see their mothers and if Bianca was letting her own anger get in the way of that-
“Mum?”
Courtney jumped, startled out of her thoughts, arm aching from how aggressively she’d been stabbing at the ground, the same spot over and over. Those poor weeds. She looked up at Danny, trying to plaster a benign smile on her face.
“Hi, darling.”
“Are you gonna be done up here soon?” he asked, shifting a little, biting his lip.
Courtney swallowed. She’d been stressing so much about the child who wasn’t here with her—had she been neglecting the one who was?
“I’m sorry, Danny. Are you alright? Are you hungry? What time is it?”
“I’m okay, I made myself breakfast,” he said, giving her a smile and a pat on the shoulder. “I just, um, think you probably need a break, right? Cause, like, uh…you’ve been out here all morning, and it’s almost noon.”
“Oh.” Courtney looked up at the sky, squinting. She had no idea. She’d been out here since sunrise, and had left her phone inside. The sun was high in the sky, and it was warmer than she’d realized, her t-shirt sticking to her, brow sweaty. She adjusted her hat. Where had all those hours gone? And why was she only now feeling how sore and tense her muscles were from the hours of bending over in the dirt?
“Don’t…um, don’t you want to relax? Like, shower, change, maybe even like…put on a bra?” Danny asked, shifting again.
Courtney turned and looked at him curiously, suddenly wondering just what he was up to, “A bra? Since when are you concerned with me wearing a bra?”
“I’m not concerned,” he said defensively, crossing his arms, “I just think…you know, you should be comfortable. Wouldn’t that make you more comfortable?”
“Is that the message you’re getting from society about boobs? That bras are comfortable?” Courtney asked, one eyebrow raised.
“Oh no, not society,” Danny groaned, slapping a hand against his forehead. “Please, please don’t start talking about society.”
“Okay, sorry. I just…” Courtney paused, recalling Bianca’s description of Danny dressed as Adore over the summer, how he’d worn a padded bra and, according to her, perhaps enjoyed it. “I do…want you to feel comfortable talking to me about this kind of thing, so if you have any questions, you can always ask. It’s very normal to talk about you body, or bodies in general, and breasts are-”
“I don't think it's normal for boys to talk to their mothers about boobs,” Danny said skeptically.
“Well, ‘normal’ is kind of a loaded word, I should have chosen a better one. But it’s certainly natural to be curious. And maybe it’s not typical for boys to talk to their mothers…but…but…” Courtney remembered all too well what it was like to be Danny’s age, to be painfully curious, to the point of obsession, about women’s bodies, but look down at a flat-as-a-board chest and feel nothing but shame, emptiness and panic. She didn’t want Danny to feel a fraction of that. “But, I’m not exactly a typical mother, am I?”
“That’s true…” Danny paused thoughtfully before adding, “Typical mothers wear bras.”
“Touché,” Courtney laughed, shaking her head. “I just want you to know that it’s okay to ask me about-”
“Can we please be done with this conversation? Before my ears start bleeding?”
“Fine, Mr. Sassy Pants,” Courtney said, swatting him on the leg with her gardening gloves. “But I’m here to talk, or even just listen, if you change your mind. Okay?”
“Fantastic,” he deadpanned, then turned to walk away, typing into his phone.
“But Danny-”
“Ughhhhh!” he looked up from his phone, irritated.
“Alright, alright, alright!” Courtney held up her hands in surrender. “Look, I’ll finish up here. And then maybe you can even join me for lunch, if I promise no boob talk?”
“Yes, fine.”
Courtney cracked her neck, rubbing at the stiff muscles.
“Great. Would you mind if I jump in the pool for a little bit first? I’m feeling sore and-”
“No, that’s a great idea!” he exclaimed, eyes lighting up.
“Okay. Thanks,” she said, taken aback. “I appreciate your enthusiasm.”
“Just ‘cause like, I said I wanted you to relax, and I know that swimming helps you relax, especially on a nice day, so…uhh…”
“Well, I do appreciate that,” she told him. “Although you know, I would get to the swimming a lot faster if you helped me out here.”
“I’ll help eat it, does that count?” he asked, giving her his cutest smile and a flutter of lashes.
“No,” she replied, grinning back and ruffling his hair.
“Well…what if I carried some of the baskets in?”
“Really?!”
“Yeah, if it’ll help,” Danny said.
This was an actual first, him volunteering to do any yard work at all. She wasn’t sure what had gotten into him. She decided not to question it, instead just gave him a big hug and kiss and then worked with him to bring in the day’s harvest and put away all the gardening tools in the shed.
She hopped into the outdoor shower to rinse off the dirt and grime, then changed into her swimsuit before getting into the pool, while Danny stretched out on a lounge chair nearby, playing with his Nintendo Switch.
Another only moderately successful method to turn off her chaotic mind was vigorous cardio. She was probably overdoing it—that was her usual MO when she found something that worked. She knew that some of the definition she had now hadn’t been there a month ago, some of the softness and curves gone and replaced with hard muscle tone. Most women would probably like that, but her body was starting to remind her of the way it looked years ago, pre-hormones, and she wasn’t thrilled about it. And yet, as uncomfortable as that was, she couldn’t stop.
(She was probably the only one who would even perceive the changes that way, anyway. To most people, she probably just looked like she’d been to the gym a lot recently.)
Swimming laps was great exercise, and perfect for the hottest part of the day, the weather still feeling like summer. But it wasn’t perfect. Because no matter what she did, how much she tried to focus on the movement and clear her head, Bianca’s words would always be there, bouncing around like a ping-pong ball in the depths of her mind.
He just doesn’t seem all that anxious when he’s with me…
Of course he wasn’t anxious when he was with her. She got to be the fun one. She got to have him on vacations and weekends and holidays. She got to take him to Broadway shows and concerts at Madison Square Garden and Chinese restaurants where drag queens serenaded him while he ate crispy egg rolls. And of course, the source of Courtney’s deepest resentment…Bianca never had to be afraid, not for a second, of losing him.
It wasn’t just that, though. If Courtney was honest with herself, truly honest—what Bianca said had sent her over the edge, not because it was wrong, but because it was right. Of course, she’d wondered the same thing many times. Was she contributing to Danny’s anxiety in some way? Were her own neurotic fears making things worse for him?
She didn’t have any answers. Just question after question after question. No solutions, either, except to swim harder, to work her body to a breaking point, so that she couldn’t think, couldn’t worry, couldn’t do anything except exist. Some time after she began—she had no idea how long—she heard a distant voice calling out. It most likely wasn’t the first time.
“Mum!”
She emerged from the water, gasping for air.
“Mum, look!”
Danny had jumped up from his chair, a big smile on his face. She paddled to the side of the pool and managed to grab the edge, panting, looking in the direction that he was pointing. A small, familiar figure was running towards them, across the grass, navy blue pigtails flying behind her.
Courtney’s mouth dropped open, her heart bursting with joy as she hoisted herself out of the pool as quickly as possible, scrambling onto the stone patio.
“MUM!” Adore cried, flinging herself into Courtney’s arms, apparently not caring that she was dripping wet.
Courtney held her tightly, heart pounding, relieved and shocked that she was actually here, a lump rising in her throat. She clung to her, holding back tears, nose buried in her hair, barely able to believe it was real. Her baby girl, really in her arms, face pressed to her shoulder.
Once she got over her initial shock, she turned her head to look at Danny, who was grinning wildly and jumping up and down with excitement.
“Did you know that she was coming?!” she asked him.
“Uh huh. It was a surprise!” he said.
“Are you surprised?!” Adore croaked out, pulling her face away, cheeks wet with tears.
“I am,” Courtney said, wiping her face tenderly with her thumbs. “And it’s the best surprise I’ve ever had in my whole life.”
Adore smiled and Courtney hugged her tightly once more.
“Come here, love, get in,” Courtney said, beckoning Danny over. He bounded over on the balls of his feet and allowed Courtney to wrap him into the embrace.
She sighed contentedly, squeezing her eyes shut, laying her cheek against Adore’s hair. There was no feeling on the planet as good as both of her babies safe in her arms.
*
Bianca swallowed, taking a couple of deep breaths. She wanted to let Adore have her surprise moment before ruining everything with what she was pretty certain would be her own unwelcome presence. Which was why she was leaning against the side of the house, the key to the rental car digging into her palm, still not sure whether this was the worst idea she’d ever had in her life. Probably, yes. But either way, she couldn’t hide forever.
Fuck. She wanted a cigarette. She closed her eyes. Not happening. Not here, not now. Instead, she dropped the key into her handbag and then took one last breath, realizing that her stupid heels had sunk into the grass. Why she thought that a pencil skirt and stilettos would be an appropriate outfit for today was anyone’s guess.
Bianca turned around the corner and crossed the grass to the patio, where Courtney was embracing Adore, Danny beside them, his arms wrapped around them both. They all looked so happy. A lump rose up in her throat.
She slowed her pace, more uncertain than ever about coming here. Should she have just dropped Adore off and gone to the hotel? Was this going to be a disaster?
“Mama!” Danny spotted her first, waving and skipping over happily. At least one person there would be glad to have her around.
“Hey, bunny,” Bianca hugged him, kissing the top of his head. “Did you get taller?”
“You always say that,” he laughed.
By now, of course, Courtney had realized that she was there. Bianca absolutely hated the stricken look on her face as she took Bianca in—like she was wounded by her mere presence. Well how the fuck else did she think Adore had appeared on her property? A spaceship?
On the other hand, what Bianca didn’t hate was the sight of her fresh from the pool, skin glistening wet, hair in a fat braid over her shoulder. The red one-piece she wore was a simple cut, showing off her body to absolute perfection. Bianca tried not to get too distracted, but damn.
“Um…hi,” Bianca said, giving her a tentative wave, letting Danny lead her closer by the hand.
“Hi,” Courtney replied, swallowing, looking a little lost as Adobe slipped out of her arms to pull on Danny’s T-shirt sleeve.
“Roach! I want to show you who I just invited to the camp. Raymond! I've got screenshots of him on the seesaw with Chief!” Adore said. She whipped out her phone to show him whatever godforsaken game they were obsessed with at the moment.
“Awesome! And come check out Splatfest! Deep Cut sing Anarchy Rainbow, and Big Man’s boss fight is straight out of Super Mario Sunshine…” he said, leading her over to a lounge chair where his Nintendo was, both of them chattering happily in a language Bianca didn’t understand for the life of her.
She stood awkwardly with Courtney, a strange and uncomfortable distance apart.
“What, um…what are you doing here?” Courtney asked, reaching for a towel. She wrapped it around her shoulders, taking on the appearance of a disaster victim, shivering after being pulled out of a sinking lifeboat.
“I um, heard you have some really nice tomatoes,” Bianca told her, attempting to lighten the mood.
Courtney stared at her, unblinking. “Is that supposed to be funny?”
“...yes?” Bianca said, trying not to let her voice shake with uncertainty.
Courtney nodded, her expression unchanging, and Bianca sighed, defeated. Not a good start.
“I’m looking at some retail space,” Bianca then explained, changing gears, as matter-of-fact as possible. “The investors want to go full speed ahead with the new stores, so…”
“Oh. Oh, that’s great. I mean, good for you.” Courtney managed a smile, which Bianca supposed was very generous of her given the circumstances.
“Thanks.” Bianca let out a little sigh of relief. Her attempt at levity had failed, but at least Courtney was being civil, now that she knew the real story. “I’m sorry for being cagey about the visitation dates, but Adore got it in her head to surprise you, and so-”
“No, I get it, that makes sense now,” Courtney said. Her grip on the towel had loosened. It now seemed less like a blanket protecting her from the elements, and more like a shawl. Bianca chose to see that as a good sign.
“Mum!” Adore cried, skipping back towards them. “Can we go see my room?!”
“That’s a great idea!” Courtney said, relieved. She put an arm around Adore. “Um, why don’t you guys take a minute and go use the restroom, get a drink? And I’ll go rinse off and throw something on, then meet you in the kitchen?”
“Sure,” Bianca said.
“Don’t take too long, I want to see it!” Adore cried, bouncing on the balls of her feet.
“You can give her twenty minutes to get dressed, Adore,” Bianca said, shaking her head.
“Five minutes,” Adore pouted, ignoring Bianca and looking up at Courtney with fluttering lashes.
“I’ll do my best!” Courtney gave her one more kiss and hurried towards a building next to the pool, straight for what Bianca had to assume was her bedroom.
A separate building for the master suite? Interesting.
Meanwhile, Adore followed Danny towards the main house.
Which was fucking massive.
She hadn’t really taken it all in before, because she was too nervous, but the place was a sprawling compound, with a huge house, more like a damn mansion than a ‘farmhouse,’ along with several smaller buildings (which were still big, but it was all relative, Bianca supposed). It didn’t look like this on YouTube, that was for sure.
She knew that there would be an extraordinary view. Courtney had been posting about #thisviewtho for years. It was the main reason she’d bought the property. And she knew that there was a big vegetable garden, and a lot of trees. But despite watching videos on her channel, not to mention seeing pictures of the kids there over the years, and FaceTiming them, Bianca had never even imagined the size of the house itself.
The kitchen looked like something out of a magazine, with a 12-burner stove and 4 ovens. She’d seen Courtney’s cooking videos on YouTube, and she was confused as fuck, because it seemed much smaller there. Maybe they used angles that only showed half the room and appliances? Bianca shrugged, shaking her head.
She drank a little of the ice water that Danny offered, and then went into a nearby powder room, where she was able to take a couple of minutes to herself to get her bearings.
Bianca leaned over the sink, hands pressed into the sides of the reclaimed wood vanity, eyes closed. She had a plan. She’d discussed the whole thing with Shangie multiple times before she left New York. Apologize, fill her in, tell her what I want without being demanding, then leave it in her hands…
Although, Shangie was sure to warn her that her plan needed to be flexible.
“You have to make sure to listen as much as you talk,” Shangie warned, more than once. “Maybe more, knowing you. You know what? Definitely more. Listen first, in fact.”
“What makes you think I’m not planning to listen?” Bianca had asked, and off Shangela’s pointed eyebrow raise, quickly followed up with, “Don’t answer that.”
Bianca stared at her reflection. She knew that she looked terrible these days. She hadn’t been eating, and her skin was drawn and sallow. The bags under her eyes were practically suitcases, requiring layers and layers of heavy-duty color-correcting concealer and powder to cover up. She opened up her handbag and began the tedious task of touching up her makeup, making herself look as presentable as possible.
When she was finally satisfied (or at least, as close as she was gonna get), she finished off with a light facial mist that promised to be both moisturizing and calming. It was probably bullshit, but since she couldn’t have a cigarette, she figured it wouldn’t hurt.
She sighed heavily and went back into the kitchen, surprised to see Courtney already there, showing Adore something on her phone. She figured that she was going to shower and change, but it appeared that when she said “rinse off,” that was exactly what she meant. Her blonde hair was loose from the braid, drying in waves over her shoulders. She was also still wearing her bathing suit, the damp red material visible through her linen cover-up. Bianca didn’t hate the overall effect.
“Hi,” Bianca said, adding, “that was fast.”
“I didn’t want to keep you waiting,” Courtney explained. “So I just used the outdoor shower by the pool house.”
“Ahh. Right.” Bianca nodded, as if ‘outdoor shower by the pool house’ was a normal phrase that regular people said in conversation. At least it explained why she was going for the smaller building earlier—the ‘pool house,’ which was probably the size of Bianca’s Hamptons house.
“Can we go up now?!” Adore asked, hugging Courtney’s waist and batting her lashes.
“Sure!” Courtney gave her shoulder a squeeze, and they headed in the direction of a staircase off the kitchen. “Your timing is perfect, actually! I was determined to be finished before your birthday, and we just hung your chandelier a few days ago. It’s pretty much all done now.”
“It is?! Why didn’t you send me pictures?!” Adore squealed.
“Well, you’re not the only one who likes surprises,” Courtney laughed, tickling her in the ribs.
As they climbed the stairs, Danny slipped his hand into Bianca’s. She looked at him and smiled gratefully, squeezing his hand in return. What a good fucking kid.
“She’s gonna be really excited,” Danny whispered, “Mum’s been working so hard on it.”
“Yeah?” Bianca asked.
Danny nodded, grinning, and Bianca smiled at him, impressed at how genuinely happy he seemed for his sister getting something nice. Not even a trace of resentment or rivalry. It certainly wasn’t anything like the relationship she’d ever had with her own sisters.
They’d just reached the landing when Bianca heard Adore’s shrieks of joy coming from the bedroom.
“I guess she likes it,” she commented drily, and Danny laughed, nodding. He led her into the room, and Bianca’s eyes widened.
She wasn’t sure what she was expecting, but this was truly something else. Bianca could see Adore’s taste everywhere: the colors, which were mostly black and charcoal and deep, rich purple, with accents of violet and lavender; the big queen-sized bed with black velvet headboard in the middle of the room; the collection of ridiculous and impractical throw pillows; the zebra-print rug; the gothic, witchy touches like the antique dresser, the purple lace ribbons that held the blackout curtains open; the framed prints on the wall of SIX: The Musical and The Craft and the incredible smoke-glass chandelier that Adore had told her all about already.
Bianca could also see what was obviously Courtney’s own agenda: the quiet alcove where a computer desk sat, stacked with neatly labeled and organized school supplies, beside a beautiful, half-full bookcase. There were a few shelves on the wall which contained carefully placed knickknacks, souvenirs, and family photos, including some from camp, and one of Adore and Danny from this summer at Six Flags that Bianca had taken.
Looking around, it was quite obvious how much time and care had gone into this room. It wasn’t just some slapdash design job. It was a labor of love, and Adore could tell too. She exclaimed over every detail, hugging Courtney over and over. When she opened one of the organizer boxes on the bookshelves, she started to cry, burying her face in Courtney’s chest and sobbing like a baby.
Bianca swallowed. She wasn’t sure what the tears were about, but figured that whatever it was, she could safely blame herself for keeping them apart for so long. It was just more evidence that she was making the right decision. She took a deep breath through her nose. Small talk, apologize, explain, request...don’t get ahead of yourself, bitch. You’re still in small talk.
She breathed slowly, walking forward to look closer at the bed, letting them have their moment. Courtney was whispering something to Adore, making her giggle, before taking her hand and leading her around the bed to the other side to show her something less emotional.
“This looks really…incredible,” Bianca said, touching the duvet cover, plush charcoal velvet embroidered with moody gothic-looking roses in various shades of purple. She knew damn well how expensive that kind of fabric was.
“It really does,” Danny said.
“Jealous?” Adore asked. She stretched out on a plush, aubergine-colored chaise lounge in front of the window, slipping on a new pair of cat-eye glasses encrusted with rhinestones, her mood clearly lifted as she teased, “You still have that baby room.”
“My room is cool too,” Danny said.
“Your room is full of dinosaurs,” Adore countered.
“Dinosaurs are cool,” Danny volleyed back.
Adore scoffed, as if that was the most ridiculous statement she’d ever heard, but then smiled, looking at Courtney and saying, “Kids. Gotta love ‘em, amiright?”
“Absolutely,” Courtney said, stifling a chuckle.
“We do,” Bianca chimed in. “Even when they’re 11-year-olds who talk like they have a martini in their hand.”
“Almost 12,” Adore corrected her, and then gasped, jumping up to examine a vintage jewelry box on her nightstand. Courtney had really gone overboard.
“Do you want to see my room?” Danny asked Bianca, almost shyly.
“I’d love to,” Bianca said.
“Ooh, we should take Mama on like, a whole house tour!” said Adore, suddenly showing more affection for Bianca than she had in several weeks. “She’s never been here.”
Bianca exchanged a look with Courtney, brief but panicked, both of them clearly thinking the same thing.
“Why don’t you guys do that, and I’ll put together some lunch?” Courtney suggested. “I assume everyone is gonna want to eat soon, yeah?”
“Omigod, yes, I’m starving!”
“Great. Just come to the patio when you’re ready.” Courtney kissed the top of Adore’s head.
Bianca let out a sigh of relief. The small talk part of her plan could only go on for so long. She didn’t think she could handle an extended tour of however big this property was without things getting incredibly weird between them. There was too much, way too much, that she needed to say.
For now, at least, all of that could wait.
Masters of the Scene, Chapter 10 (Bitney Parent Trap AU) - Veronica
A/N: Thanks as always to @tumble4rpdr for her indispensable beta help.
Click here for prequels and previous chapters, or here if you’d rather read on AO3.
Chapter Summary: Bianca confronts Courtney about her surprise appearance at the party, and the two of them reach a very tentative peace.
***
“Ow!” Courtney exclaimed, as Bianca grabbed her arm and dragged her behind a pillar.
A thought flashed through her mind; this was the first time they’d touched each other in over seven years. And the fact that Bianca’s fingers were digging into her upper arm so tightly that she could’ve bruised it was not a very good sign. It certainly wasn’t the touch that Courtney remembered, the one she secretly still longed for.
After a moment, Bianca seemed to realize the same thing. Or at least, she must have regretted being so rough and loosened her grip, giving Courtney a flash of hope until she saw her mouth, still set in a firm line.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” she hissed.
Not a great start. Courtney took a breath and spoke very slowly, measuring each syllable so as not to escalate the situation. “I had to come anyway, and deal with the kids-” she began.
“Here?! Now?! We agreed on next week!”
“Well, I thought…” Courtney trailed off, looking at Bianca’s enraged expression, trying not to think about how even in this state, her ex-wife looked unfairly beautiful, dark eyes that pierced into her soul, full lips…
She swallowed, shaking herself out of her thoughts and rubbing her arm where Bianca had grabbed her. Why did Bianca’s withering glare still have such a strong effect on her, this many years later? She felt like she was shrinking in on herself, a lump rising in her throat.
“I can’t believe, after all this time, that this is the way you’d choose to-” Bianca cut herself off, closing her eyes briefly before saying, “And using the kids that way? That’s fucking low, Courtney. I never thought you would-”
At that, Courtney bristled. She was trying to be a good sport, but even the very accusation was offensive.
“I wasn’t using them!” she exclaimed, aware that she was getting defensive, that her voice was getting higher in pitch and volume. “They wanted to come. They were excited-”
“Yeah, well this isn’t a party for children, in case you haven’t noticed.”
“You don’t want your kids at your engagement party?” Courtney asked suspiciously, turning the tables back on her. “Why not?”
It seemed crazy to celebrate an upcoming marriage and exclude half of the family members. Was this really what Bianca wanted? Courtney couldn’t help wondering if it was actually Fame who suggested an “adults only” party. She didn’t know her, of course, but she didn’t appear to be all that child-friendly.
“First of all,” Bianca began through gritted teeth, practically growling, “I don’t owe you any explanations-”
“I was just asking because-”
“And second, you really think they should be running around a cocktail party with an open bar?” Bianca asked. “No, scratch that. You really think Adore should be running around a cocktail party with an open bar? I love her to death, but I don’t trust her for a second.”
“They’re 11. No one’s giving them alcohol,” Courtney reasoned.
“Wow, someone’s clearly never read Drew Barrymore’s memoirs,” Bianca scoffed, rolling her eyes like a slot machine.
She was deflecting. That was clear. The truth was, Courtney wasn’t sure why she’d chosen to show up this way, other than morbid curiosity about the fiancée—which she had to admit, could have easily been satisfied in another, less dramatic way. Maybe she did want to prove something, despite what she’d told Adore.
The only thing Courtney was certain of at that moment was how agitated Bianca was, and she suddenly felt guilty, knowing that she was responsible. This should have been a happy night for her, and it wasn’t fair for Courtney to be intruding. She’d not sure what she was thinking, how she could have justified this in her own mind.
“Look, I’ll…I’ll go. And I’ll take the kids; we can go out to dinner or something.”
“Okay. Yeah, that’s…okay. Thanks.” She seemed to calm down almost immediately at that suggestion, face softening.
Courtney nodded, shoulders sagging a bit. Knowing that her presence caused Bianca that much stress, that even the thought of her leaving eased her tension, was somehow both unsurprising and deeply unsettling. She had to fight back tears, but fight them she did, because there was no way she was going to let Bianca see how easily she’d gotten under her skin.
“Okay, then. I guess…I’ll be in touch about a good time to talk.” Courtney bit her lip, avoiding Bianca’s big brown eyes.
“Wait. Um…” Bianca sighed. She pinched the bridge of her nose, then said, “If you want to crash at my place, there’s a guest room.”
“Are you sure?” Courtney asked. She knew that’s what the kids wanted, of course, Danny whisking her bags into the guest room almost the second they’d arrived. However, she figured that staying there would be out of the question, so she’d reserved a room at a bed and breakfast a short distance from Bianca’s house and was planning to check in later that evening.
“No. I’m not.” Bianca let out a dry chuckle. “But…it seems like the right thing to do,” she added quietly. She followed up her statement with a tiny smile, dimples only barely appearing in her cheeks.
For a second, it caught Courtney off-guard, as she did what she’d been avoiding throughout their entire exchange, locking eyes with her, seeing the softness that she’d spent so many years missing. After a moment, she managed to tear her eyes away again, remembering where they were.
“Thanks. Um…have a good party. And…congratulations. Again.”
***
Bianca slipped off her heels the second she walked in the door, sighing with relief. It had been a grueling night—her heart never fully recovered from the shock of seeing Courtney up close, in the flesh. She’d tried to stay present, and on the surface, she’d done a pretty decent job. She’d laughed with friends, shared cute stories about how she and Fame met, managed to keep up the facade of a perfectly content and unconflicted bride-to-be. Inside though, she was reeling. She couldn’t help the racing thoughts that kept entering her mind, about Courtney and their awful break-up and even worse, the early days when they were so blissfully happy.
“I’m fucking exhausted,” Fame said, and Bianca letting out a dry chuckle, nodding in agreement. Exhausted was an understatement for what she was.
Bianca dragged herself up the stairs to the bedrooms, cursing her past self for demanding cathedral ceilings in this stupid house. Fame turned towards their bedroom, looking back over her shoulder when Bianca didn’t follow.
“You coming?”
“Yeah, in a minute. I’m just gonna check on the kids. Make sure Adore settled in okay.”
“Alright.” Fame pressed a kiss to her cheek and then headed for their bedroom, while Bianca crept the opposite direction down the hall.
She was careful to be quiet, in case they were already asleep—which she hoped they were, since it was past 1 am. She pushed open the door to Adore’s room, and was met with an unexpectedly heartwarming sight. Courtney was lying in the middle of Adore’s double bed, reading a book in the low light from the bedside lamp, with both kids curled up against her, sleeping soundly.
The three of them looked peaceful and cozy, and seeing it made Bianca feel strange, something akin to regret. It was like a window into another life, an alternate reality where she hadn’t fucked up so phenominally the first time around. She swallowed, pushing the door open a little more.
“Hey.”
Courtney looked up, quickly shutting the book. “Hi. Um…where’s…um, your-”
“She’s getting ready for bed,” Bianca said, keeping her voice as low as possible so as not to wake the kids.
“Oh.” Courtney started to slowly extricate herself from their clutches, untangling their limbs.
She’d traded in her party clothes for a pair of yoga pants and a baby-blue tank top, her hair tied up in a messy bun, clear frame glasses on her face. Bianca couldn’t help thinking that she looked even prettier like this, immediately annoyed at herself for the thought. When she was finally free, she crawled to the edge of the bed, kneeling there. Bianca could tell that she had something to say, so she waited patiently.
“Listen, I’m…I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to ambush you.”
“Oh no?” Bianca asked, eyebrows shooting up nearly to her hairline, wondering what else she could possibly have been doing. “What did you mean, then?”
“Well…I guess I thought…” Courtney hesitated, then continued, “I thought that showing up that way, everyone would have to be on their best behavior. But…that wasn’t fair to you. I’m sorry.”
Bianca stared at her for a few moments, trying to gauge exactly how full of shit she was, before realizing that she might actually be telling the truth. She nodded, sighing a little.
“I uh, may have overreacted.”
“No, you?” Courtney teased, a smile pulling at her lips.
Bianca chuckled, then gestured to the kids, wondering how their sleeping faces managed to look so innocent. “So…what’s going on with the monsters? Have you figured it out?”
“I think…I don’t know,” Courtney said, letting out a bit of a sigh. “I think we’re gonna need to talk to them together.”
“Yeah.” Bianca sank down into an armchair in the corner, rubbing her forehead.
Courtney adjusted the covers, making sure they were both tucked in securely, then touched Adore’s cheek gently.
“She looks like you,” she mused. “They both do.”
“Yeah, too bad for them,” Bianca joked.
“Shut up, you know you’re-” She stopped, narrowed her eyes, taking in Bianca’s growing smirk.
“I’m what?” Bianca asked, finding herself anxious for the praise that seemed to be on the tip of Courtney’s tongue.
“Nice try.”
Bianca laughed, shaking her head at how easily they slipped back into the kind of lighthearted banter they’d always had. If she wasn’t so tired, she might be more concerned, but for now, she tried to enjoy the moment for what it was.
Courtney switched off the lamp and turned back to Bianca, her face now illuminated by only the moon, turning her green eyes silver. Bianca found herself struck by how profoundly beautiful she was, how her very presence seemed to glow.
It wasn’t the first time she’d thought such things, but it had been a while.
“...Can I ask you something…kinda personal?”
“Okay…” Courtney approached her tentatively, perching on the ottoman across from her chair.
“How come you never...I mean, why are you still single? You must be beating them off with a stick.”
Courtney shrugged, doing a very poor job of suppressing the smile that tugged at her lips. Still a whore for a compliment, Bianca noted with some amusement.
“Well, being single is…kinda fun,” she said with a glimmer in her eyes.
Bianca rolled her eyes. Of course she thought being single was fun. She was probably still the belle of the ball wherever she went.
“But also. I guess I just never found anyone who…” She paused, and Bianca found herself leaning in, eyes locked with hers, hanging on her every word just like she used to. “...who frustrates me the way you did.”
Bianca laughed, releasing some of the tension in the room, relieved that Courtney chuckled along.
“I am pretty talented in that area,” she agreed, putting a hand down next to hers, their fingers millimeters apart.
Courtney glanced down at their hands and then back up to Bianca’s face. She leaned forward slightly, fingers edging closer until their pinkies just barely brushed together.
Her chest rose and fell rapidly, lips parted as if she could read Bianca’s mind—as if she knew how badly every cell in Bianca’s body ached to kiss her again. Almost unconsciously, Bianca reached forward to catch a lock of hair that had come loose from her bun, tucking it gently behind her ear.
As Bianca drew closer, she could hear the rapid pounding of Courtney’s heart—or was that her own heart?
Then, a loud creak caused Courtney to jump out of her skin, pulling back and clearing her throat. Bianca was grateful for the dark, which covered up her cheeks flushing with shame.
“It’s an old house, it’s just-”
“Right. Um…I should get to bed,” Courtney said quickly.
“Yeah. Okay.”
Bianca watched her leave, then heaved herself up out of the chair with a sigh. She glanced at the kids one last time before shutting the door and walking down the hall.
*
Adore turned to Danny, cracking an eye open, only to find her twin brother staring morosely up at the ceiling in the dark.
“So close,” Adore muttered softly.
“I know, right? Ugh,” Danny sighed.
“Well…there’s still time,” she said.
Danny turned toward her, a grin on his face, nodding. “There is.”
***
When Danny and Adore had first cooked up their whole harebrained scheme, he’d known what a longshot it all was. He wasn’t stupid or naive; he knew that people who got divorced rarely got back together. And when the divorce was as contentious as his moms’ was, it was even less likely.
Still.
He couldn’t help the glee he felt when he entered the kitchen and saw Mum at the stove. From the looks of things, she’d already found the nearest Whole Foods, and was whipping up a batch of his favorite quinoa pancakes with a banana coconut topping. That was all nice enough, but his chest flooded with almost irrational joy when Bianca entered, taking in the scene with a slightly puzzled look.
“What are you…?”
“Well, I haven’t seen my son for 2 months, so I thought I’d make the quinoa pancakes that he loves.”
“Ahh,” Bianca grimaced slightly. “Yum.”
“Don’t worry,” Courtney said, pouring a cup of coffee, her voice gently teasing, “There’s plenty for everyone.”
She handed over the cup, and Bianca accepted it gratefully.
“Thanks.”
“Mmhmm.”
It was all so cozy and domestic, and almost made him forget about the dreaded fiancée still sleeping upstairs. Adore was next to enter the kitchen, hair a mess, rubbing her eyes. She didn’t even make a face or pretend to be grossed out by the quinoa pancakes. She simply took a plate and helped herself to a couple.
Bianca raised an eyebrow, asking. “You eat quinoa now?”
“Yeah, well,” Adore shrugged, sprinkling the toasted coconut over her pancakes. “I tried these when I was pretending to be allergic to gluten, and they’re not bad.”
“Hey, yeah, that’s right.” Bianca looked over at Danny curiously. “You’ve been eating tons of gluten and dairy and all the crap she always does…have you been sick?”
“Nope.” Danny took a sip of the fresh-squeezed tangerine juice that Courtney had given him. He looked at her, head cocked. “Is that weird?”
“Well,” Courtney began, stammering out, “I mean, gluten sensitivity is not quite...I mean, he may not be ‘allergic,’ per se.”
“So...I’m not allergic to gluten?”
“Well...perhaps not? I just wanted us to eat healthy, and gluten is in so many of the worst foods, so...are you upset?”
Danny considered this for a moment, extremely aware of Bianca and Adore’s eyes on him, all of them expecting him to throw a fit over being deprived of donuts or whatever. Instead, he shrugged.
“Nah. I know you just want what’s best for me, Mum.”
Courtney grinned, wrapping her arms around him and kissing his forehead. “I do, precious.”
“Gag,” Bianca muttered, then nudged Adore’s shoulder. “How did you fake that for 2 weeks?”
“I deserve an Oscar,” Adore said, sticking her tongue out.
Courtney let go of Danny and turned to her next, smothering her face with kisses. She seemed to resist at first, but soon relented, letting Courtney do her thing, even enjoying it.
Danny caught Bianca’s eye roll and gave her a grin. She reached over to squeeze his hand, face melting into a matching smile.
“Well, isn’t this nice?” came a voice from the doorway. “Family breakfast?”
Danny turned, looking at Fame with a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. Why did she have to show up now, just when things were starting to feel normal? When he could pretend, just for a few minutes, that they were a real family? The way Fame had said ‘family,’ with a note of disdain—he’d been doing his best to be nice to her ever since his talk with Bianca, but in that moment, he could have kicked her.
“Yeah, so what are you doing here?” Adore muttered under her breath, and to Danny’s surprise, it wasn’t Bianca who shot her a Warning Look, but Courtney.
“Exactly! So glad you’re joining us!” Courtney enthused, returning to the stove. “I’m whipping up some quinoa pancakes, would you like some?”
Bianca looked from Courtney to Fame, a bit like a deer in the deadlights. When Fame gave a shrug and said, “Alright,” she seemed to relax.
“Help yourself. Or, you can wait for the fresh ones, which will be ready in a few minutes.”
“Uhh…I can wait, thanks.” Fame turned to Bianca. “Can we talk for a minute?”
“Sure…” Bianca followed her into the foyer, Danny watching them both with his brow furrowed.
As soon as they were out of earshot, Adore leaned forward and stage-whispered to Courtney, “I don’t get it.”
“You don’t get what, love?”
“The weird nice game you’re playing with Fame? Are you buttering her up so you can poison her or something?”
“God, no,” Courtney laughed. “I’m being nice because it won’t help you guys if I have a bad relationship with your new stepmother.”
Adore visibly shuddered at the word, and Danny felt it like it had been his own body.
Stepmother.
The very word conjured up images of fairytale monsters and heartless homewreckers. Which maybe wasn’t fair, but so far Fame hadn’t done anything to show him that she would be a positive addition to the family.
“And you should be nice too,” Courtney said, pointing the spatula at Adore before flipping the next batch of pancakes. She was rewarded with one of Adore’s best mega eyerolls, tongue sticking out in disgust.
*
“Look, I’m just trying to make the most of a shitty situation,” Bianca whispered, trying to get Fame to understand.
“I know you are, but it all just feels a bit…fucked up.” Fame’s arms were crossed in front of her chest, foot tapping impatiently.
“Well…exactly. That’s exactly what it is.” Bianca put her hands on Fame’s shoulders. “That’s my point.”
Fame sighed, rolling her eyes. “I think I’m gonna go back to the city until this all blows over. I don’t like the vibe, and it’s just…a little too strange for me.”
“Okay,” Bianca said, nodding. “If that’s what you want, I-”
“What I want is for you to not be sharing a house with your ex, but,” she shook her head. “I know this isn’t your fault, so…”
“I’m sorry. This is the first time the kids have done anything like this, and we just…we’re not sure exactly how to deal with it. A simple punishment doesn’t feel like the right move.”
“Right.” Fame sighed again. “Why don’t you call me when they leave?”
“I will.” Bianca leaned forward, kissing her gently. “Thank you for being so understanding. You’re the fucking greatest, you know that?”
“Hm,” Fame chuckled, “I know. You should really marry me.”
“I intend to.” Bianca kissed her again, arms around her waist.
“I’m gonna go grab my bags. Can you get me an Uber to the Jitney?”
“I’ll do you one better,” Bianca said. “I’ll get you an Uber back to your apartment.”
“Wow, big spender.” Fame gave her a wink and one last peck on the cheek before heading upstairs for her things.
Bianca took a deep breath, relieved and even a bit proud of their ability to handle this like adults, and went back into the kitchen.
“Is everything alright?” Courtney asked sweetly. Her faux concern was really too much, but Bianca wasn’t about to make a scene.
“Yeah, everything’s fine. She has to go back to the city to take care of some things.”
“Bummer!” Adore exclaimed insincerely, mouth full.
Bianca slung an arm around her. “But she’ll be back in a few days, and then you have the rest of the summer to bond your little butts off.”
“Can’t wait,” Adore said drily.
🙋♀️🤍💚 Masters of the Scene, Chapter 9 (Bitney Parent Trap AU) - Veronica
A/N: Hey y’all! This chapter is brought to you by the AQ Pride Challenge! It uses joy, party, and “make it rain” during the shopping spree section. I could probably also make an argument for lust, but I don’t want to push it. 😜 As always, thank you so much to @tumble4rpdr for being an amazing and incredibly thoughtful beta reader.
Click here for prequels and previous chapters, or here if you’d rather read on AO3.
Chapter Summary: Adore helps Courtney prepare for their trip to the Hamptons, the twins are reunited, and Bianca gets a shock.
***
“Well? What do you think?” Courtney asked.
They were in the salon, Adore waiting for her at reception, flipping through magazines. Adore pulled out her ear buds and looked up, a huge smile spreading across her face.
“You look so good!” she squealed, and then crossed her arms smugly. “And come on. I was right about the lashes, wasn’t I?”
Courtney rolled her eyes. It wasn’t something she planned on making a habit of, but lash extensions did seem to make a huge difference on her face, especially since her own lashes were blonde. “You were right. I guess.” She stuck out her tongue playfully.
Adore giggled, then reached out to grab her hand. “Time to shop!”
“I have to pay first,” Courtney laughed, “But I wanted to make sure you approved.”
She headed back to the reception counter, Adore practically skipping at her side. Courtney squeezed her hand, feeling incredibly grateful for this time together, and for the way their relationship had deepened so much over these past few days. It was what she’d always wanted—and what part of her dreaded that she’d never have when Bianca and Adore had moved to New York.
“Okay,” Adore said, showing Courtney a map on her phone, “I think we should go to Beverly Hills. Saks and Neiman Marcus are on the same block, and then we can hit Rodeo Drive.”
“Since when are you so label-conscious?” Courtney asked, pulling out her wallet.
“Well…I’m not. But Mama has really high standards.”
Courtney suppressed another eye roll, saying, “I know that, but I’m not trying to impress anyone.”
“You’re not?” Adore raised an eyebrow.
“Well…I don’t want to pretend like I’m something that I’m not,” Courtney explained. She supposed, if she really broke it down, that she did want to impress Bianca. Of course she did—but she didn’t want to appear as if she was trying too hard. It was a delicate balance that she wasn’t sure she could explain to an 11-year-old, no matter how precocious and seemingly sophisticated she was.
“Okay…but what if you were yourself, only with really nice clothes?”
“Believe it or not, I do have nice clothes. I just don’t wear them when I’m gardening.” Courtney finished signing the receipt with a flourish for dramatic emphasis.
“I know, but won’t it be fun to splurge on some new things? You deserve it.” Adore looked up at her, that irresistible, mischievous smirk on her face.
“I could use some shoes,” Courtney admitted, putting her wallet back into her bag.
“There ya go! Mama likes Louboutins.”
“Of course she does.” Courtney wrapped an arm around Adore’s shoulders and led her towards the door, shaking her head.
Eight stores and six shopping bags later, Adore was finally satisfied. And the truth, that Courtney didn’t care to admit, was that once she started trying on clothes and shoes, the whole process was actually really fun. Especially letting Adore style her and give her advice; it was hard to tell based on how she dressed every day, but Adore had clearly absorbed buckets of fashion knowledge from Bianca over the years. Her favorite part was emerging from the dressing room, how she always knew when something looked good from the look of sheer delight on Adore’s face—and the opposite, how her complete lack of a poker face told Courtney right away when something wasn’t working.
Either way, she would ham it up, spinning and twirling and serving model poses until Adore was either shrieking with excitement that she buy the outfit immediately or doubled over laughing, begging her to “take it off, for the love of god!”
Really, the hardest part for Courtney, ever since Adore had revealed her identity, was to refrain from smothering her with heaps of affection, showering her with all the love she had. But by today, it seemed like Adore was willing to accept it. At least, she didn’t seem to mind when Courtney impulsively gave her big hugs or kissed the top of her head or cupped her cheeks to marvel at how lovely she was. Adore even initiated some of the affection herself, revealing the cuddly nature that Courtney remembered from when she was small, before all the shit hit the fan.
Their last stop was at Gucci, pure indulgence in the form of new luggage to replace the beat-up set Courtney’d been dragging around the world for five years.
“Alright,” Courtney said, shutting the bags in the trunk of her car, a bright blue hybrid Subaru Crosstrek that Adore had taken to calling ‘LG’ for ‘Lesbian Goals.’ “Wanna walk to Urth Caffe for a bite to eat? It’s only a few blocks away.”
“Walk? In Los Angeles?” Adore asked, eyes round with surprise, tone dripping with very familiar sarcasm. “Are you even allowed to do that?”
Courtney pulled her in for a hug, laughing. “I got special permission from Mayor Garcetti, since my child is a bona fide New Yorker.”
Adore giggled, hugging her back tightly around the waist. “Well in that case, sure.”
***
Danny waited anxiously by the bay window, drumming his fingers on the sill. Bianca had left with Fame for the venue a little while before. Frankly, he thought it was pretty rude that he wasn’t invited to the party. But as Bianca explained when she was giving him a hug and kiss goodbye, ‘it’s a grown-up party,’ and they’d have a chance to celebrate as a family when he visited over Christmas.
He supposed it was good that he could be here when Adore and Mum arrived, too. Where were they? It was a Saturday, traffic from the airport shouldn’t be this bad. Maybe they’d gotten stuck behind an accident. Maybe they’d gotten stuck inan accident. He picked up his phone, panic filling his chest just as a text buzzed in.
ARIEL: 5 MIN! SEE YOU SOON, ROACH!
The second he caught a glimpse of the town car pulling into the driveway, Danny leapt to his feet and shot out the door, running barefoot across the grass to fling himself right into his mother’s arms. She embraced him tightly, let him bury his face in her shoulder, inhaling the familiar scent of her. It had been almost two months since she’d dropped him off at camp, and while he already knew that he was missing her, it didn’t hit him exactly how much until that moment. The warmth of her arms had always been the safest place in the world, and inhaling the subtle, familiar scent of her rose perfume and fair trade coconut oil made him burst into unexpected tears, wetting her soft cotton top.
“I missed you so much, Mum,” he sobbed, sniffling and clinging to her. Adore would mock him mercilessly for this, but he didn’t care. “And I-I’m really sorry for lying.”
“I know, precious, and I missed you too.” Courtney swayed slightly, almost like she was rocking him to sleep, letting him cry it out. She waited until his grip released a bit before pulling back, drying his cheeks with her thumbs and then holding his face affectionately. “Your hair got longer.”
“Oh…yeah. Do you like it?”
She nodded, pulling him in for another hug. “Of course I do, I love everything about you.”
He sighed happily, a feeling of relief washing over him as the tension and anxiety that had been building up in his body seemed to melt away.
“Uh…what am I, chopped liver?” asked Adore, standing in front of a pile of suitcases with a hand on her hips.
Courtney pressed a messy kiss to his cheek and then opened her arms to release him. “Go say hi to your sister.”
Danny turned to Adore, mirroring her pose when he saw what she was wearing, one hand on his hip, head tilted. “I can’t believe you’re wearing that shirt,” he said, gesturing to the Misfits t-shirt, the one that had landed her in the lake back at camp.
“Why? It’s my favorite,” she said, a cheeky grin on her face.
“Adore, if you think that I-” Danny was cut off when his sister leapt forward and tackled him into a big bear hug.
“Missed you, Roach,” she murmured.
Danny laughed, hugging her back, thrilled that they were finally going to be the team he always wanted. Suddenly, the shirt didn’t matter—if she wanted it, she could have it.
“Aww, you guys!” Courtney clasped her hands together, clearly thrilled to see them so close, and wrapped her arms around the both of them.
***
After a quick snack of the healthiest things Courtney could find in Bianca’s fridge (plus a Snickers bar that Adore swiped from the freezer when she wasn’t looking), they all went upstairs to get ready for the party. Danny had already put Courtney’s bags in the guest room, leading Adore to ask him where he planned to sleep.
“Where I’ve been sleeping,” he informed her, pointing to her hastily-made bed.
“This is my room!” she shrieked.
“Yeah, well, I was pretending to be you, where did you think I was gonna sleep?” he laughed.
“I guess I didn’t think about it.” She wrinkled her nose, slightly disgusted at the thought of a boy in her bed all this time. “I guess we can change the sheets.”
“Excuse me, only one of us goes to sleep with dirty feet.”
“You love my dirty feet!” Adore tossed one of her socks at him, giggling when he grimaced in disgust and batted it away like it was on fire.
“Besides, why are you worried about sheets?” he asked. “We’ve been wearing each other’s underwear.”
“Omigod, gross!” Adore moaned, slapping her forehead. She really hadn’t thought this through.
“Hey so, I picked out an outfit for you to wear tonight,” he said, switching gears. He looked so proud that Adore almost hated to burst his bubble. Almost.
“Aww, that’s so cute that you think I’d wear anything you chose, Roach.” Adore ruffled his hair.
“Listen, I got pretty good at imitating your wannabe punk style, so…come on. Be honest. You would totally wear this.”
He pulled a black dress out of the closet. It was short and off the shoulder, with a fluffy tiered shirt. He’d paired it with black fishnet tights covered in purple flowers, black leather fingerless gloves, and shiny purple docs. She folded her arms, trying to be annoyed at how well he’d done, but failing.
“Well..fine, I’ll wear it,” she sniffed, “since I don’t want to hurt your feelings or anything.”
“Right,” Danny laughed.
“That bag is your stuff.” Adore pointed to the red suitcase they’d packed for Danny. “I’m sure you can find some boring button down or whatever. You should probably go change in Mama’s room.”
“Fine, fine. See you in a few.”
Adore took her time getting dressed, then sat down to fix her eye makeup and clip in her extensions for the first time since camp. It felt nice to be wearing them again, although she’d forgotten how heavy they were. She added a bunch of silver bangles and was just putting in the black sugar skull earrings Courtney had bought for her on Melrose when there was a knock at the door.
“Come in.”
Danny opened the door, striking a sassy pose. He was wearing a turquoise shirt, black pants, and way too much product in his hair. Plus a couple of bracelets that she was pretty sure he’d stolen from her, but she decided not to make a big deal about it.
“Well? What do you think?” he asked.
“It’s alright. You looked cuter the last time I saw you.”
“You mean when I was dressed as you?”
“Exactly,” Adore smirked.
He rolled his eyes and flopped down onto the bed, looking way too comfortable. “I did a good job with your outfit though, didn’t I?”
“Not terrible,” Adore said, standing and giving him a twirl.
“I guess you’re over that whole padded bra thing, huh?”
“Don’t look at my tits!” Adore shrieked, covering her chest with both arms.
“What tits?”
Adore stuck her tongue out at him, laughing when he stuck his right back. She pushed him slightly, making room for herself on the bed, when she caught a glimpse of something new pinned to her bulletin board: sketches of some rather cute dresses signed with both ‘BDR’ and her own name. “What are those?”
“Oh. Well, when I was pretending to be you, I went into work with Mama a bunch of times.”
“Willingly?”
“Yeah, it was fun.”
“And she still thought you were me?” Adore laughed.
“Yeah. We, uh, kind of made them together. Do you like them? I was really trying to channel you.”
Adore looked at them closer, nodding. “They’re cool. I guess it doesn’t suck that my name is on them.”
Danny smiled proudly, and Adore felt compelled to ruin the moment by slugging him on the shoulder. He grabbed it dramatically, clearly about to make a fuss, when a soft knock sounded on the open door.
“You can come in, Mum!”
“Okay, um…” A few moments later, Courtney pushed open the door, standing there with an uncertain expression.
She looked amazing—Adore took at least half the credit, because the salon excursion was doing most of the work, her hair shiny and healthy and spilling over her shoulders in beachy waves, not to mention how the lash extensions made her green eyes pop. Adore also had to hand it to her; she’d done a decent job with her makeup, the smoky eyes and red lips giving her naturally pretty face a kind of dramatic glamor.
And her dress was gorgeous, though not one of the ones they’d purchased together—short, red, covered in beads, tailored perfectly and showing a lot of leg. Plus, a pair of Loubs that Mama would definitely appreciate. Adore wouldn’t have changed a thing.
“Wow!” Danny exclaimed, mouth opening slightly, clearly not used to seeing her like this.
“But do you think it’s too…” Courtney tugged slightly at the hem, and Adore shook her head vigorously.
“No. It’s perfect.” She jumped up from the bed, suddenly excited for this dumb party, and especially to see the look on Mama’s face when they walked in.
***
Courtney hesitated. Just a few more steps and she’d be in the party, facing Bianca once again. Seeing her face up close, actually up close, for the first time in years. Her chest felt tight, stomach in knots.
This was a terrible idea. What was she thinking, coming here like this? When the idea first occurred to her, she’d been positive that the party would create a kind of neutral safe-zone. That it would force them all to be on their very best behavior, to put the kids first and avoid an argument.
It suddenly occurred to her that this was a very dangerous assumption. And even if it was true—even if they managed to be civil—she was still about to see her. Part of her knew that she’d have no control over her physical reaction to being in the same space as Bianca again, and that thought was terrifying.
“Oh god,” she murmured, barely audible. Because as foolish as it was, it seemed far too late to back out now. She swallowed, steeling her nerves. Danny sensed her anxiety like the angel that he was, and took her hand.
“You look really pretty, Mum,” he said softly.
“Pretty?” Adore chimed in, taking her other hand. “She looks fuckin’ hot.”
Courtney pressed grateful kisses to both of her kids’ foreheads, unable to put into words how much she loved them, and then took one last deep breath to calm her frantic heartbeat before stepping inside.
“Here we go.”
*
“Thank you,” Bianca smiled, accepting a hug from one of her work colleagues. “We’re so happy you could make it. Right, honey?”
She was surprised to see the sour expression on her fiancée’s face.
“Are you okay?” she whispered.
“Is that your ex-wife?” Fame asked, face scrunched up into a pout.
“What?!” Bianca turned in the direction she was looking, surprised. There was no way that Courtney would show up here, not tonight...right?
But there she was. Flanked by both Adore and Danny, strolling towards them with a sunny smile as if it was the most normal thing in the world. Bianca’s heart nearly leapt out of her chest.
“Omigod,” she exhaled, more air than voice, watching them in slow motion, a lump growing in her throat.
“I thought you said that you didn’t speak!” Fame muttered through clenched teeth.
Bianca tried to respond, but found her throat dry and tight. She felt like she was frozen in time, eyes glued to Courtney, unable to look away. Not that she really wanted to look away.
Because this wasn’t the relatable, casual, wholesome-mum Courtney that she’d been projecting recently on social media. This was a next-level, glammed-up goddess. The smoky-eyed, long-legged vixen that she’d been years ago, back when Bianca hadn’t been able to keep her hands off her.
And to top it off, she was wearing the hand-beaded red cocktail dress that Bianca had made for her, oh so many years ago. They’d written “summer chic” on the invite, and so the patio was a sea of pastels and neutrals, floaty sundresses and flowing linen. And here was Courtney, the scarlet of her dress as dark as Bianca’s cheeks must be.
The dress still fit her like a glove, the subtle stretch in the fabric molding to her body perfectly. If possible, it looked even better now than when Bianca first made it.
It was a dream—a fantasy that Bianca had had more times than she could count, over the years.
“Bianca! Congratulations!” Courtney sang, lashes fluttering, the picture of good-natured support.
Bianca’s eyes still didn’t know where to land—her heart was racing, cheeks flushed, knees wobbly—as Bianca became aware of the eyes on her, especially Fame’s, the dream turned into a waking nightmare. In spite of everything, she continued to gape at Courtney with her mouth hanging open.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she managed to choke out the understatement of the year. “Wh-what are you doing here?”
“Oh, well,” Courtney said, swinging the kids’ hands at her sides like they were five-year-olds. “I just came to fix our little mix-up with the children, and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to meet their new mother, could I?”
Bianca’s heart was still pounding in her ears, brow furrowed in confusion, her grip on the wine glass so tight she thought it might shatter. She watched helplessly as Courtney reached out to Fame, pulling her in for a warm hug.
“You must be Fame. Oh my gosh, you’re just stunning. Danny told me you were beautiful, but...I mean, you’re gorgeous!”
“Thank you,” Fame said primly, clearly wishing she was anywhere else on the planet, and for that, Bianca couldn’t blame her one bit. The whole situation was horrendously awkward.
“Courtney, maybe we should-” Bianca croaked out, but she didn’t get very far before Courtney clasped Fame’s hand in hers, continuing on as if she was invisible.
“I can’t wait to get to know you! Now, is Fame your given name? It’s so unusual.”
“It’s my brand,” Fame replied drily.
“Ah! Wonderful!” Courtney flashed another dazzling smile. “Oh! You haven’t met Adore yet, have you?”
“Uhh. No, I guess not.”
Bianca hadn’t gone into too much detail about the twins’ switch, just enough to explain why there was suddenly a young boy in their house where there had previously been a girl. Which probably explained why Fame looked incredibly uncomfortable.
“Adore, say hello to Fame,” Courtney coaxed, her arm around Adore’s slim shoulders, prodding her forward.
“Hello, Fame, charmed,” Adore held her hand up as if she expected Fame to kiss it, hamming up the moment like only she could.
“Alright, knock it off!” Bianca barked, downing her wine. It was much easier to snap at Adore in this scenario than Courtney, even though the whole awkward encounter was her fault.
“What?” Adore asked, eyes wide, doing a perfect impression of Courtney’s whole innocent angel act. “Aren’t you happy to see me, Mama?”
“Yes! Yes, of course. I’m…come here.” Bianca pulled Adore in to give her the proper greeting that she’d failed to before due to shock. She hugged her tight, kissing the top of her head, trying not to notice that her hair smelled like Courtney’s shampoo, the sense memory nearly knocking her over. “Nice to see you, you little shit.”
Adore giggled, resting a head on her shoulder and squeezing her back just as tight. Over the top of her head, Bianca looked at Courtney, who was still smiling like a lunatic, holding Danny’s hand.
“Mum!” Danny exclaimed. “Let’s go say hi to Shangela! You haven’t seen her in ages, right?”
“No, I…sounds great,” Courtney said, letting him pull her away, but not before turning back to Fame and gushing, “So wonderful to meet you; I really hope we’ll become very good friends. And congratulations!”
Bianca took in the dazzling smile, the wink, the general joyful air. Most people would have bought the whole thing, but Bianca could see right through her. Could see the manic gleam in her eye that gave away everything.
What fucking game was she playing?
“What in the hell was that all about?” Fame muttered under her breath, mirroring Bianca’s thoughts perfectly.
“I…have no idea,” Bianca admitted. She shook her head, snatching two glasses of champagne from a passing tray.
“I’ve already got a drink,” Fame told her, tapping the side of her martini glass with an acrylic nail.
“I know,” Bianca said. She drained one glass and then the other in rapid succession. What a fucking night this was going to be.
