16. Stella/Frannie: "No, it's fine." for
izzybeth Title: Pleasantly Surprised
Pairing: Stella/Frannie
Rating: G
Author: dogwoodblossom
Notes: This is not the story I set out to write, but I think it's better even though it's significantly less porny. I hope you like it.
Pleasantly Surprised
by dogwoodblossom
Stella never thought she’d give up law or move to Florida. She had never pictured herself attached to an Italian. She had especially never pictured herself as a part owner of a bowling alley. But, these things happen.
Stella had been sitting in Welsh’s office, watching Vecchio be debriefed about Muldoon. The man was not conventionally attractive, but he was suave and well dressed. He had a very winning smile and his bad pick-up lines were charming. Stella could easily have fallen for him, but fate intervened. Frannie, in an attempt to be helpful, had burst into the room with a tray of hot cappuccinos. She came in ass first because she was yelling at Dewey, and tripped over her brother’s shoes. One cappuccino spilled across both Ray and Stella, there was some backsplash onto the Lieutenant’s desk, most of it ended up in a puddle on the floor.
“Oh my gosh!” Frannie exclaimed. She grabbed some no doubt important papers off the desk and began using them to mop up Stella. “I am so so sorry,” she said as she attempted to wring out Stella’s skirt.
“No, it’s fine,” Stella said, trying to fend Frannie off.
“No, it’s not fine,” Frannie said swiping the contents of a case file across the toe of Stella’s gold pump. “These are fabulous shoes.”
“Thank you,” Stella said. She really hoped the coffee stains would come out.
“Hey, Frannie! What about my shoes? What am I chopped liver?” Ray demanded.
“God, Ray,” Frannie said rolling her eyes. “You’re a guy and a cop. Who cares if you have crap on your shoes?” Ray began to reply and it would certainly have deteriorated into bickering if Lieutenant Welsh had not intervened.
“Miss Vecchio,” he said loudly. “Perhaps some napkins or a mop would be better suited to this task than my reports?”
“Oh, sorry Lieutenant,” Frannie said. She uncrumpled the soiled paperwork and tried to flatten it by running it across the edge of the desk. Then she set it back into the open manila file on the desk, oblivious to the fact that it was wet, stained, dirty and illegible. She bustled out of the room.
Later, Frannie invited Stella out for shoe shopping to replace the ruined pumps. Frannie knocked over a display table and when the security guy politely asked them to leave, she took Stella to her favorite deli where they had the best pastrami. Stella was hooked. Francesca Vecchio was quirky and sweet and every bit as charming as her brother in her own way.
Stella was not the only one who didn’t see it coming. It took everyone by surprise. Particularly Fraser. Some part of him, the arrogant part, had always thought that Francesca would be distraught if he left. So, when Frannie found someone else within days of his abrupt return to Canada, his surprise was second only to Ray Vecchio’s.
Ray Vecchio was furious, but no more so than he ever was when anyone dared touch his little sister. But since Stella was a lady, there was no one for Ray to threaten or be belligerent to.
When informed that his ex-wife had run off to Florida to start a bowling alley with Francesca Vecchio and that they were expecting their first child within the year, Ray Kowalski was a little hurt. Then a little turned on.
Lieutenant Welsh was never surprised by anything Frannie did, just exasperated. Frannie herself was also more than a little surprised to find herself with a petite blond partner instead of a big, dark, Canadian one. But in the end, everyone agreed that it had worked out for the best.