Work Text:
The insistent buzzing of Annalise's doorbell was the sound she'd been dreading all night. "Fuck." She knew exactly who was on the other side of the door, and she knew exactly why that person was there.
"Dining room table," she said before Tegan could start yelling at her. Tegan shoved past Annalise and stormed into her condo. Moments later, Tegan came back into the living room, her hands filled with a vase full of red, yellow and pink roses. "Where's the card?" she demanded. No greeting, no explanation, nothing else.
Annalise tried to sound innocent. "What card?"
"The card that came with the flowers, Annalise. Where is it?"
Annalise shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe I dropped it." Right in the trash can, she added silently.
"You dropped it, huh?" Tegan up her cell phone, "Well, lucky for me that a copy of the card was sent to my email address, isn't it?"
Damn it! This revelation meant that Tegan had known about the elaborate bouquet sent to Caplan and Gold all day. She knew that Annalise must have signed for it - Tegan had been in a meeting for hours - and she was waiting for Annalise to bring it up. Tegan had even asked Annalise during lunch if she'd gotten anything in the mail, and Annalise told her no. Tegan just nodded, knowing all the while that Annalise had lied to her. "It's not like I could read the card," Annalise sulked. "It's in Spanish. I can't read Spanish."
"But you knew enough Spanish to hide it from me, didn't you?" Tegan pressed.
Indeed, she did. Annalise barely understood the words written on that card, but she knew what 9:00 meant, and she knew that name of the expensive restaurant Estia. And most important, she knew the name Cora. "You know if you were any one of my other employees, I'd have you fired, right?" Tegan demanded.
"Good thing I'm not one of your other employees, then." Annalise knew she was pushing it, but her shoulder still hurt from lugging the heavy, expensive vase filled with three dozen roses all the way to her car. But she'd done it anyway, shoving the hated flowers in her trunk and driving them home. Annalise knew it would get back to Tegan somehow, or maybe she would have told Tegan herself. She just needed to wait until after 9:00 to inform Tegan of her ex-wife's dinner invitation at one of the most expensive restaurants in all of Philadelphia.
It was a quarter to eight.
"Annalise," Tegan said, trying to make Annalise understand the seriousness of this breach of privacy. "When I made you my registered agent, it was under the impression that you could be trusted. That I could count on you to get to letters and packages that I might not be present to receive, and that you wouldn't read my mail even if it was just a card on some flowers-"
"I told you," Annalise cut in. "I couldn't read it."
"It's not about the damn card. It's about respecting my privacy - and not stealing my stuff, for that matter." Tegan found herself growing frustrated at Annalise's unapologetic behavior. "These are mine, not yours! Who are you to keep them away from me?"
"Somebody who doesn't want to see you hurt again, that's who," Annalise snapped back. "And I sure as hell hope you're not expecting me to to apologize over that bitch-"
"Do not call her a bitch, Annalise." Tegan wasn't making a request - that was a demand. "I don't care how you feel about Cora - do not call her a bitch."
Annalise gritted her teeth. "Tell me something, Tegan. Do you think that nice young woman is as polite and respectful about what any of her lovers call you?"
"That's not your business."
"Now that's where you're wrong. When my friend comes crying about how her ex-wife is playing head games, it becomes my business."
"That's it!" Tegan slammed Annalise's front door. "Don't you ever throw that up in my face again, Annalise! Ever!"
"I'm not throwing it up in your face, Tegan! I'm just saying that she's doing it again. Just like last time, back when you won the Lahey case. She just had to email you to tell you congratulations, and you just had to write her back-"
"I said cut it out, Annalise!" Tegan's voice started to tremble. She knew what Annalise was getting at. What Cora had considered a friendly hello, Tegan took for an attempt at reconciliation, as they'd done so many times in the past. The reunion was great. The sex was incredible. The breakup was so unbearable that Tegan missed three days of work without contact, not answering her phone, emails or text messages. When Annalise finally got in touch with Tegan, her voice on the phone was so inaudible and incoherent that Annalise begged Tegan to unlock her front door so she could let herself in.
Over the next 10 days, Annalise dumped every bottle of gin and threw away every pill in the house, right down to Tegan's multivitamins. Annalise also had two keys to Tegan's home made so that she could never be locked out of Tegan's house again. Not that Tegan even noticed. She moved when Annalise told her to move, ate the food Annalise set before her without comment, and slept in-between hysterical crying jags that left Tegan clawing at the floor or the mattress, racked with crippling sobs while Annalise comforted her as best as she could. It would be nearly a week before Tegan got out of bed, brushed her teeth and bathed without prompting. Annalise had seen Cora bring Tegan low before, but something about this particular breakup had destroyed a part of her. The Boss Bitch was dead; only the lawyer remained. Beautiful and brilliant still, but utterly broken in spirit. And it wasn't the first time.
But Annalise was determined that it would be the last time. This time, Tegan wasn't alone. She had Frank and Bonnie to watch Game of Thrones with. She had Nate to play Spades with. The Keating Three were all about to graduate - Asher, in particular, had gone from nearly the bottom of the class to graduating with honors - and Laurel had returned to Philadelphia with baby Christopher, who loved trying to cram Tegan's dangly earrings in his mouth when Tegan held him on her hip. Oliver and Connor were even talking about adopting a baby, though they'd finally settled on a dog. All of these people formed a hedge of love and friendship around Tegan. She would never go down that dark path again, not if Annalise had anything to do with it.
As the months passed, Tegan was becoming more and more like the fiery, passionate lawyer that she'd met years ago. Now everything Tegan had done to build herself back up was in danger of crashing down again. "Why is Cora sending you flowers today, anyway?" Annalise demanded to know.
"None of your business," Tegan muttered, but the look on Annalise's face demanded Tegan give a real answer. "It's our anniversary. We were married 11 years ago today in Boston."
"Goddammit...T, do you not see how manipulative Cora's being? Does she even care about your wedding anniversary? Or is Cora just trying to fuck with your universe because you were on my legal team? She always seems to come around when your name is in the press, doesn't she? Has she even filed those goddamned divorce papers yet?"
Tegan didn't answer any of Annalise's questions. "My God, Tegan!" Annalise fought to hold it together. "Is this all it takes for you? Your ex-wife just throws you a kind word, the smallest token of her so-called love and you just fall all over yourself chasing her-"
"The way I chased you?" Tegan interrupted, her voice growing hard. "You seem to like it better that way, don't you? Holding your hand and calming your nerves and doing your biding when you're on trial for this or probation for that. What, are you pissed that I'm not your whipping girl anymore?"
"This isn't about being a damn whipping girl, Tegan!" Annalise spat. "You give that bitch twice the slack you give me and I'm ten times she friend she is!"
"Watch your mouth, Annalise!" Tegan ordered. "That's twice I've warned you."
"You're not gonna police my language in my house!" Annalise exploded. "And it's my house where you come to cry every time that bitch shows up dangling her snatch in front of you like a fucking dog treat! I know she still calls you, Tegan! I know she still emails you! Why? Are the two of you divorced or not, for God's sake?"
Tegan's eyes grew wide. "You're reading my emails, too?"
"I don't have to read your emails, Tegan! I know when Cora's contacted you because you're always walking around with a dopey smile on your face like a lovesick schoolgirl. And I know when she's dropped your ass like a bad habit because you're always walking around like a zombie or crying in your office." Tegan paled under Annalise's pinpoint observations. "You don't eat. You don't sleep, you barely function until she's out of your system!" Annalise snatched the vase of flowers from Tegan's hands. "So no, Tegan! I'm not sorry I hid your flowers! I'm not sorry for trying to protect from you that bitch! I will do whatever it takes to keep her away from you-"
"Annalise Keating." Tegan's voice was so calm and so quiet that it gave Annalise pause. "If my vase or my flowers touches that floor, I swear to God you'll be selling pussy on Wolf Street."
Annalise's hands were trembling. She was squeezing the glass so hard that it was a miracle it hadn't cracked. "You sure do get some bass in your voice when you're talking about Cora, don't you? You know what? Take 'em." Annalise shoved the flowers back into Tegan's hands, even though she would've been happier smashing them upside Tegan's head. "You should be leaving, anyway. She's waiting for you."
"Keep talking to me like you're talking to me, Annalise. You're gonna be saying a whole lot less when you're sitting at home suspended."
"You can suspend me over this if you want to. You can fire me for all I care. In fact, you probably should because I'd do it again if I could. And if Cora tries to reach out to you, I will do it again." Annalise walked over to her couch and slouched down, staring straight ahead. "You got your damn flowers, so go lick lamb sauce off your wife's fingers or something." She knew she sounded like a petulant child, but this was one thing she was not going to apologize for, job be damned.
But to Annalise's surprise, Tegan simply placed the huge bouquet on Annalise's table, sat down on the sofa, took Annalise's face into her hands, and gave her a soft, sweet kiss on the lips. "I'm where I want to be, Annalise," she replied tenderly. "And I'm with who I want to be with."
Tegan's reassuring declaration made Annalise tremble. She let out a watery breath that she didn't realize she was holding. "Oh, Annalise," Tegan crooned as Annalise struggled to breathe. "Are you afraid that I'll leave you and be with Cora?" Her hands raked smoothly across Annalise's face, wiping the tears from her face. "I would never do that to you."
"I know." Annalise's voice was husky. "I trust you. But I don't trust her, I'm sorry. I think she hears your name in the press and she shows up just to...I don't know, see how you're doing. You know? Like she just wants to see if you're still single and bitter about losing her."
"It's not her fault," Tegan replied sadly. "We used to do this a lot, this whole divorce dance. This is the third time she's filed papers on me. I'd beg, we'd reconcile, everything was all wonderful...lather, rinse, repeat." Tegan laid down, placing her head on Annalise's lap and facing the ceiling. "This is the first time I've actually ever signed the papers. I don't think Cora was expecting that."
"What made you do it this time?" Annalise asked, stroking Tegan's face while she talked.
Tegan grinned up at Annalise. "A beautiful, intelligent, very sexy woman said to me - and I quote - 'sign the damn papers.' So I took her advice. And I'm so glad that I did." Tegan reached up and stroked Annalise's full, lush lips. God, Tegan loved her lips. "I pledged my love to you, Annalise, and I mean to uphold that pledge." She sat back up and placed kisses, kisses, kisses all over Annalise's cheeks and lips and neck, kisses that Annalise returned just as fiercely. "Thank you, Annalise," Tegan murmured in her ear, gently biting her left lobe while Annalise laid her down on the couch, kissing her from above. "Thank you for letting me love you."
The words tore at Annalise's heart. "Thank me? I should be thanking you." If it wasn't for Tegan expressing how she felt for Annalise, they would still be stumbling around denying their feelings for one another. Annalise had to reject Tegan when she confessed her love for Annalise shortly before the verdict at her murder trial was read. But once Annalise was declared a free woman, her thoughts - and her eyes - turned to Tegan, who had been rejected by Annalise that day but still stood by her side in support.
While Frank, Bonnie and the former Keating Four reunited, Annalise and Tegan just wandered around together, talking and holding hands until they found themselves back inside the same room where Tegan had declared her love just an hour earlier. "Tegan...Eve used to tell me that when the sun shines on you, you're a fool to turn away." Annalise had taken Tegan's hands into hers then. "I'm tired of being a fool, Tegan." Tegan's eyes grew wide as Annalise continued. "I still can't promise to give you the same love that you've offered me. But now that I'm not going to spend the rest of my life in prison...well, I'd like to try."
Was it really just three weeks ago that Tegan threw her arms around Annalise, laughing and crying as they kissed until they ran out of breath? It took everything in Annalise not to sweep the table clean and make love to Tegan right there on the cherry wood. Not even a month since the sun began to shine down on Annalise, and here she was already taking Tegan for granted. Had Cora done the same over the years? Would Annalise make the same mistake? Never, never, Annalise thought, kissing Tegan harder and squeezing her tighter. As her mama used to say, "I might be a different kind of fool. But I ain't gonna be the same fool twice."
"Just so you know, Annalise," Tegan said when the two of them finally came up for air. "Next time, if Cora sends anything to my job, sign it 'return to sender' and give it back to that bitch."
"You're still trusting me to be your registered agent?" This time Annalise initiated the kissing.
"Mmmm, you have a point. Maybe I should give the responsibility to Michaela instead."
"And have the whole office knowing your business? Girl, be my guest." The women cracked up. "You know this is the first time I didn't drop everything and go run to be with Cora." Tegan mused aloud. "It feels good."
"You deserve to feel good, Tegan. And...I'm sorry." The words felt as foreign in Annalise's mouth as they did on Tegan's ears, but Tegan deserved to hear them. "For the flowers and the cursing, the disrespect...all of it. And I never would've broken your flowers, Tegan."
"Yes, you would've," Tegan retorted without missing a beat.
"Okay...I would have. But I would've cleaned them up for you and put them in another vase or something." They laughed some more, and oh, it felt so good to laugh with Tegan again. "Do you forgive me?" Annalise took one of Tegan's hands and kissed it. "I hope you do."
In response, Tegan swung a leg around Annalise's waist, straddling her thighs as she sat on Annalise's lap. Tegan's ass fit just right in Annalise's hands, especially when she squeezed so hard that Tegan gasped a bit. "You already know I forgive you," Tegan whispered, touching her forehead to Annalise's. "You never had to ask."
"I know. I just needed to hear you say it." With one arm securely holding Tegan against her chest, Annalise leaned forward, plucked a pink rose from the vase and tickled Tegan's nose with it. "So...what are you gonna do with these?"
"What would make you more comfortable?" Tegan asked. She draped her arms on Annalise's shoulders, locking her fingers behind her head. "I don't want to keep flowers from my ex if they make you feel some kind of way."
That was the difference between Tegan and Annalise. If Eve had sent her flowers, Annalise never would have thought to ask Tegan how she felt. And even if she had, Tegan would never ask Annalise to throw them away, even if they did come from Eve. She'll make you a better woman, Bonnie had told Annalise when Annalise told her about Tegan. No, Annalise would not be jealous of some colored plants. She refused to be threatened by Tegan's self-centered ex. "They're beautiful flowers. No reason to waste them." She took the rose and put it behind Tegan's ear. "We might even be able to use these later on," Annalise added with a wink.
"Sounds like a plan." Tegan swung her leg back over, rose to her feet and stretched. "But for now, I'd like to take a warm bath and get out of my work clothes if you don't mind." There was no need for Tegan to go back home - she had enough clean clothes, underwear and toiletries at Annalise's home to keep her there until Judgment Day.
"Want some company?" Annalise blurted without thinking. Ever since they made it official, Annalise and Tegan had kissed, felt each other up, even dry humped like a pair of horny teenagers a few days ago. Annalise had decided that Tegan to decide when that moment would come, but now here she was making the offer just hours after stealing the girl's flowers. I have no self-control whatsoever. "Sorry, Tegan," Annalise pursed her lips and smiled. "I didn't mean to-"
Tegan held up her hand to silence Annalise. Moving slowly under her approving gaze, Tegan took off her blazer and tossed it to the floor. Her blouse came next, then her bra, and that made Annalise smile. When Tegan was down to nothing but her skimpy black underwear and three inches heels, Annalise's tongue darted across her lips. "Annalise?" Tegan cocked her head and smiled. "Come here."
Meanwhile, in the plush luxury bathroom at Estia's, Cora Duncan struggled to breathe as she listened to the instructions growled in her ear. She tried not to move, tried not to concentrate on the cold steel pressed again her cheek. "It's over between you and Tegan. For good. No more flowers, candy, phone calls...none of that shit. First thing in the morning, you take your ass down to the courthouse and file those papers you wanted signed so bad. Understand?"
Oh, yes, Cora understood. If only she'd thought to send the bouquet to Tegan's house, not her job! Then Cora remembered that she didn't know where Tegan's townhouse was. She'd wanted it that way. That was probably the first sign that Tegan was beginning to let her go. A baby step, of course, as Tegan had declared her love for her the very next day. Tegan never could love at an even pace; it was all or nothing for her. For nearly 10 years, it had been nothing. Tegan was committed to Jorge Castillo, not to her. So nothing was what Cora offered Tegan in return.
Yet the papers Cora wanted so badly for Tegan to file sat untouched in her dresser drawer. The freedom Cora had pushed for so hard had brought her no joy. Meanwhile Tegan's accomplishments, such as managing partner at C&G or the Lahey trial, filled her with pride. Annalise's trial was just as good an excuse as any to contact Tegan, thus leading to a trickle of "how are you" emails or a text from time to time, though Cora didn't dare make a phone call, not after the disaster that was their last reunion. Only this time, Cora didn't get Tegan's usual speedy, long-rambled responses and thinly-veiled attempts at nighttime visits.
Finally, on their wedding anniversary, Cora spent an exorbitant amount of money on a huge bouquet of Tegan's favorite flowers and an invitation to Estia's. Cora missed Tegan so badly that it hurt. Only But this time, it wasn't meant to be. "Tegan has friends now," the voice informed her. "She has a family. A woman who loves her. She has no need for you and your games anymore."
Cora was no fool. This psycho with the knife pressed against her cheek was one of Annalise Keating's thugs. Just a few weeks ago, Cora watched Tegan standing to the left of Keating with a smile on her face. She knew, just as she'd known without even meeting Annalise, that Tegan had the hots for the old cunt. Apparently, the feeling was mutual.
"You are never to contact Tegan again." the voice instructed Cora. "You got it?" The hand in Cora's hair squeezed so tight that Cora whimpered from the pain as she nodded. "Good." A hard hand shoved Cora out of the bathroom stall and onto the floor. When Cora dared to look up, cold blue eyes cut through Cora like steel and nailed her to the floor. "Get the hell out of Philly," the voice ordered. "And don't ever come back."
Annalise was almost asleep when the phone rang. "It's done," said the voice on the other end. "Last I saw Cora, she was practically flying the street looking for a cab. Wouldn't even stick around to call an Uber."
"Thanks, Bonnie." Frank would have been the better choice, she knew, but Annalise feared that he wouldn't be able to get close enough to Cora to give the message. Besides, Annalise didn't want to traumatize Cora...yet. "Text me when you get home so I-"
"- know that I made it home safe," Bonnie finished. They both laughed. "How did Tegan take it about you stealing her flowers?" Bonnie asked.
Annalise propped herself on her elbow and looked up to the head of her bed. "Better than I expected." Tegan had taken it quite well, all right...on the couch, on the floor, on the bed, anywhere and any way possible. Now she was snoring softly, her head resting on Annalise's calf and a rose petal plastered to her cheek. It was hard for Annalise not to feel a bit big-headed. Knocking out a woman 16 years her junior was quite an ego boost.
Carefully, Annalise extracted herself from their scissoring position, brushing rose petals from her naked, aching body. They were going to be a bitch to clean come morning, but the look on Tegan's face when she followed the trail from the bathroom to Annalise's rose-covered bed would be more than worth it. The minute Annalise stood, her abs and hips begged for mercy. Dear God! she thought, shuffling to the bathroom. Would she even be able to walk in the morning?
Behind a closed door, Bonnie and Annalise chatted a bit about the coming day. For the first time in months, Bonnie was going to argue a case before a judge. It was a simple case of contract law, but for Bonnie, it might as well had been a Supreme Court case. "Bonnie," Annalise finally prompted when she grew tired of going over trivial concerns and rudimentary torts. "Tegan wouldn't have chosen you for this case if she didn't think you could win. So go get a good night's sleep, okay? You're going to be fine."
"You get some rest, too," Bonnie urged. You sound like you're losing your voice. Don't go getting sick on us."
Annalise looked back into her bedroom and suppressed laughter. Who knew such a little woman could make her scream so loud for so long? "I'm fine, Bonnie. See you tomorrow." Or not, Annalise thought as she limped back to bed. Was mind-blowing sex a legitimate reason for taking the day off?
"Annalise?" Tegan lifted her head as Annalise climbed back into bed. "Is something wrong?" she asked, her voice still filled with fatigue.
Lord, if this girl wanted to make another go at it, Annalise feared she'd never walk again. "Everything's fine. Go back to sleep, senorita."
"Mmm-kay." Annalise wrapped her arms around Tegan and kissed her cheek, and Tegan settled comfortably in Annalise's arms. Yes, for the first time in what felt like forever, everything for Annalise felt just right.
END