Blessings In Disguise (lesbian)

(6) A Fully Loaded Taco Doing A Dance

"Whoa! Hold on. You think she's Robin's mother?"

Dylan clenched her hands together to reduce the temptation to slap him upside his curly head. "It's a fact, Jimmy. Except for the change in hair color and the much shorter style, she looks exactly like her 'cause she is her!" It occurred to Dylan that maybe her cousin wasn't aware of who he was dining with. He saw Celeste on a few occasions during the time they dated. He didn't remember her face? She asked him.

When Jimmy started to answer in the affirmative, he realized that he didn't actually have a clear picture of his cousin's ex-girlfriend. However, Layne's earlier familiarity now made sense. But--she couldn't be Celeste, right? There wouldn't be any point in pretending that she was someone else. Plus, anyone who wanted to be in disguise should do more than alter their hairstyle.

Layne incredulously looked at the young man. "You're suspicious of me too? You saw my business card with my name printed on it. Layne Bishop. Not Celeste..."

"Anderson," Dylan helpfully supplied. "Why are you still in San Francisco? I thought you'd live two thousand miles away by now." Last week Dylan informed her private detective that she would no longer require his services. Unfortunately, he hadn't found any leads on where Celeste might have gone. She wasn't the world's best mother, but she was a pro at playing hide and go seek.

"I just arrived here this morning. This is my first trip to SF. I reside in New York City."

Dylan's eyebrows lifted into her hairline. Could it be a coincidence that she lived in the same city as Reggie? Doubtful. "See Reggie much?" She smirked in response to the other woman's blank stare. "Allow me to guess. You don't know who Reggie is? Perhaps you're suffering from amnesia, Celeste."

"Stop calling me Celeste."

"Just because you've given yourself a different name doesn't mean that you're not the same selfish bitch I know and despise."

Tossing her cloth napkin on the table, Layne rose and stormed away from the table. She had just made it outside when Dylan and Jimmy caught up with her. She jerked her arm away when Dylan tried to grip it. The taller woman took an involuntary step back when she was pushed in the chest.

"Do not touch me," Layne warned, appearing just as incensed as this stranger she wanted to slug. "No one grabs me like that. Don't you ever put your hands on me!"

Dylan apologized before she could stop that part of her brain which felt remorse from sending the signal to convey it to her lips. She didn't owe Celeste an apology. That should have gone the other way around. "Look. We need to talk."

"No we don't, because I don't know who you are. I don't know what you're talking about. Jimmy, could you open your car so I can retrieve my luggage?"

Keys in hand, Jimmy headed into the parking lot while Dylan asked the blonde if she cared about her baby at all. She was unprepared to witness the sorrow, which entered those haunting gray eyes.

"I love my baby with all my heart." Layne threw her hands up in the air. "What is this about? I honestly don't know where you're coming from and I can't fathom how you would know anything about my daughter. Who are you?"

Groaning, Dylan briskly rubbed her palms up and down her face several times before dropping them. "You admit that you have a daughter, but you won't admit that you know me?" Layne didn't respond. "Fine. I'll play this your way. My name is Dylan Tate and your baby was left on my doorstep on November 26th and with my family's guidance I've been taking care of her ever since. I tried to find you, but last Thursday I surrendered. I should have listened to what you wrote in the letter you left with the baby. Don't try to find you because you're already gone. But now, here you are."