~Paybacks and Jealously ~

3rd in my "Deleted Scene." My idea of what happened after the end of 403 "Open Line."

It goes along with my other fic Skirts, Slip (ups) and Paybacks but doesn't have to be read first. It can stand on its own.

Sharon's phone dinged telling her she had received a text while Judge Grove was walking her out of his office. She didn't want to be rude and look at her phone as she was talking to him but it could be work. So Sharon pulled her phone out of her jacket pocket and took a quick glance at it. "Work, needs you?"

Seeing that it was Andy asking her to meet him for dinner at their usual spot. She shook her head and said, "Oh no, it's just a friend."

They stopped in his private chambers, she waited until he hung up his robe and collected his things. Looking around the dark and a bit stuffy room Sharon thought this was what she had wanted her life to be like. She was sure that by now she would be a judge. That was always her goal while in college but life threw you curves and she was very happy right where she was. His voice brought her out of her thoughts, "Alright I'm ready. After you," he said as he held the door open for her once again. "Now, don't let me keep you if you have somewhere to be. Maybe, a certain Lieutenant to meet for dinner?"

Shaking her head as she walked by him, "It's fine and stop trying to get information out of me. I've already told Andrea and Gavin my personal life is none of their concern. Why are all my friend's lawyers and judges? You all are too nosy for your own good."

"We just want you to be happy, Sharon. At least you got one lawyer out of your life. I was glad to hear about your divorce." Sharon stopped in her tracks and turned to glare over her glasses at her friend. He kept walking, saying as he passed her, "We both know I'm right and don't pull that Darth Raydor glare on me. It doesn't work." As they walked down the front steps of the building they stopped to say good-bye. "Now, Sharon don't forget to take my advice. We've been friends a long time, our kids grew up together so I know what a protective mother you can be." They both laughed at that, knowing how right he was. "Which, isn't always a bad thing but you need to step back and let him spread his wings. As you very well know he'll fall a few times, but you did great with Rusty and he's a smart kid. He'll be soaring away before you know it."

"That might be what I'm afraid of, Charles," her voice came out sadder then she wanted it to be. Giving him a tight hug she said, "Thank you for everything."

"You're welcome. I hope I don't see you for a while either unless it non-work related. Oh and have a nice dinner." They laughed and headed off in different directions.

Sharon sent Andy a text saying she was leaving now and that she'd meet him there. Though she wasn't hungry, dinner with Andy always helped settle her nerves. By the time she arrived, Andy was at a table waiting for her. Sharon was taking off her jacket when she felt it slide down her arms. She turned around and smiled at Andy giving him a quick kiss and said, "Thank you."

He placed her blazer on the back of her chair then held it out for her to sit. As she sat he leaned down and whispered, "You look beautiful." Walking back to sit in his chair Andy added that he had ordered her usual and the dinner should be out soon. They had casual conversation until the waiter arrived with their meals. "Sharon, you need to eat. Unless I actually see you chew and swallow, I won't believe you ate any dinner at all." He was worried when she seemed so distant as they ate their dinner. Well, she wasn't really eating it was more like moving her food around on the plate. "You're not mad at me, are you?"

"No, not at all Andy. You know we've been busy." She knew why he was asking that: it was because she stayed away from him a bit more at work. Since they've been officially dating, it had been hard not to look at him when they were in the murder room. She found it easier to stay away from Andy for fear that she would slip up and accidentally touch him more then she should or let her eyes soften too much when she saw him in his suspenders. They haven't taken their relationship that far yet, but when he wore those suspenders she imagined that she liked to grab a hold of them, pull him against her, slowly slip them off and then start working on the buttons of his shirt. Yes, it was just easier for their sanity for her to stay a little bit farther away from the man her mind couldn't stop daydreaming about. This was also their way to prove that they could be in a relationship and not let it affect them at work. There were rules to follow and he seemed to like to bend them. Andy wouldn't be Andy if he didn't try to find a way around them. Though she still needed to get him back for the other day.

She knew she wasn't being very good company tonight. Her mind was on what the Judge told her. In fact, his exact words were "Stay out of it, Mama." Not that she could really ever do that? Sharon knew she was hovering with Rusty because they had been through so much. She had taken a step back and look at what had happened. He was almost a witness in another murder trial and riled up Taylor as if that man needed anything else to hold over her. It hadn't gone too well when she handed over the forms informing him that Andy and she were in a relationship. Sharon watched his eyes widen as he read them. Taylor removed his glasses, set them and the forms on his desk. He looked up at her and calmly said, "Are you serious? You and Flynn? The hot-head Lieutenant and the..." Sharon narrowed her eyes at him daring him to say what he was really thinking. "And the rule-following Captain?"

Seeing that he took the safe route with possible nicknames for her she eased back on her glare. "Well Chief, I am following the rules as it's regulated in the LAPD..."

Taylor held up his hand to stop her, "Sharon, relax. I know what's required with this too. I was just surprised that it actually happened. So Flynn finally got up enough guts to make you realize what was going on with you two?"

"What?" Sharon was in disbelief, Was she really the only one in the entire LAPD that didn't see what was going on between Andy and her?

As he leaned back in his cushioned chair Taylor said with a laugh. "Wow, I didn't really think he had the courage to ask out the..."

Sharon jumped in with an, "Excuse me?" She was ready for a fight from him and the way the Taylor was reacting took her off guard.

"Former head of IA. The person that he butted-heads with." He stood up and held out his hand to her. "Well, should I say congratulations? Sure took you two long enough." As he walked her over to the door his hand was on the small of her back. "I'll make sure the paperwork will get to Chief Pope, I'm sure he'll be happy to know he was right." He laughed at the shocked look on her face. "Yes, I'd say you were the only one out of the loop on this, even if you were part of that loop. Now, goodnight Sharon, see you both tomorrow. I'll trust you to keep it out of the workplace?"

All she could do was nod her head in agreement. It wasn't very often Sharon Raydor was left speak-less but she couldn't form a word right now if she tried. She could hear his continued laughter as he closed his door behind her.

Andy knew he overstepping his bounds with the question he was about to ask but there was no way he was going to be able to hold it in anymore so he just blurted out. "So, I hear Judge Grove asked you to stay after he excused the Kid and Andrea."

Sharon almost dropped her fork at the tone Andy used. It was possibly a mixture of confusion and hurt. "And where did you hear that from?"

"Does it really matter, Sharon? Anyone that's been around you two knows he has a crush on you. Actually, almost everyone one I know has a crush on you and that's men and women." Andy was now rubbing the back of his neck. He didn't want to get worked up over this but it wasn't in him to stay calm when something upset him.

It was Sharon's turn to sound confused. "What are you talking about? I was one of the most hated people in all of the LAPD. Nobody liked me, let alone had a crush on me." Picking up her fork again to take a bite of food even though she wasn't really hungry. Sharon waved her fork in the air, "Charlie, I mean Charles, oh I mean, Judge Grove and I are just friends."

"Oh, like we are just friends?"

He had said it with such contempt that her head snapped up from her plate. She was only trying to pay him back for letting her name slip and that smirk he tried to hide after he did it just let her know it was all intentional. Except now Andy sounded and looked really upset. This wasn't what she meant to happen so she tried to calm him down, "Andy, you know we, as in you and I, are more than just friends." Looking into his now darken brown eyes she could see something else there. "Wait a minute are you jealous?"

"Hell, yes, I'm jealous." Andy slammed down his napkin on the table, which in turn caused his fork to pop up and hit his water glass shattering it on impact. He jumped up from his seat to avoid getting wet.

Feeling overwhelmed, this wasn't supposed to happen and she wasn't doing this in a restaurant full of people watching them. "I guess this dinner is over and there's no reason to be jealous," Sharon said as she quickly grabbed her jacket from the back of her chair and headed for the door.

Having to wait for the waiter to pay the bill, conveniently he was at their table trying to clean up the mess Andy just made. Now he had a whole different mess to try clean up and she was walking away from him as he stood there. Finally finished paying Andy muttered under his breath, "Holy shit. Holy shit. Holy shit," as he hurried after Sharon. His mind was now over-thinking, what did she mean he shouldn't be jealous? Was it because there wasn't anything between her and that Judge or because there wasn't anything between her and him? Rushing through the door he saw her leaning against her car. Feeling grateful that she hadn't just left him without letting him explain himself, their eyes meet as he stopped in front of her. Both stood there in silence, Andy with his hands buried deep in his pockets and Sharon with her arms crossed. He was happy to see there was no glare in her green eyes. The quiet seemed to last an eternity, but it was only a few moments.

Trying to keep how upset he was out of his voice, Andy took a chance and started, "Sharon, you're a beautiful woman. What am I suppose to think? Here I am waiting in the squad room, as I said I would be I might add, I'm sitting there waiting to hear what happened in the meeting and only Andrea comes back and that was only to finish paperwork on the deal for that scumbag photographer. So I ask her how it went, not asking about you or where you are because God forbid that I ask a personal question about the woman I..."

Panicking when she heard what he was about to say Sharon quickly said, "Stop. Let's not do this here. Why don't we go back to my place so we can do this more privately?" She wasn't ready for this and she was stalling for time. She tilted her head and added, "Talk over coffee?"

Andy took a few steps back so she could get into her car and helped her close the door. He knew she needed time but he wasn't going to let her run away from this whatever this was between them. Sharon noticed, in her rear-view mirror, that Andy waited by his car until she was pulling out of the parking lot before getting in his. As she was driving home, her mind was out of control with thoughts. What was he just about to say? Not many things start like that. Or he could have been about to say the woman I... liked or the woman I... was dating or the woman I... cared for. It could even have been the woman I... think drives me insane. Who was she kidding, certainly not herself? She knew exactly what he was about to say. Was it really so bad if he said it? She came to that realization as she was half-way home and was sitting at a red light; her hands gripped so tight on the steering wheel that her fingers were starting to hurt. When the light changed to green she took a deep cleansing breath and agreed with her inner-self. No, it wasn't that bad if he said it. If it was as Assistant Chief Taylor said and Andy had found the courage to ask her out on a real date, then she could find her own courage to not walk away from what they had together.

As she was walking towards the elevators, Andy was pulling into a visitor spot. Sharon waited for him and they rode up to her floor in silence, neither knowing what to say. She opened her door and held it open for him to follow her in. As she closed the door she leaned back against it. Sighing she decided it was her turn to start what needed to be said, "Andy, I know you said the next time I invited you in for coffee... but I'm not exactly ready for that step... yet. I'm getting there, but not yet." Sharon took off her shoes and her jacket laying it on the back of the couch. Then she headed for the kitchen to make them some coffee.

Andy came around the counter and stood behind her. He kept his hands in his pockets so he wouldn't touch her. He didn't want to spook her again. "Sharon, we don't have to do this now."

"No, we don't, but I need to. I need to let you know what I'm feeling." She turned around and looked at him, "It's not easy for me but you deserve that much. Andy, when I'm with you, you help me see the world in a different light. You help me take the time to relax and have fun. I'm realizing my days don't have to be filled with work and more work." Doing something she wanted to do for a while now, but held back, Sharon took a step closer to Andy and wrapped her hands around his suspenders tugging him against her. A shiver ran through her as she felt his hands grip her hips to stop from knocking her over from the force she used to bring him closer. She looked up into his now curious-filled eyes and said with a smile, "I care about you. Really truly care about you, Andy. I hope you're willing to wait and that I'm worth waiting for." Giving a quick tug on his suspenders, Sharon pulled him down the rest of the way, kissing him passionately to show him what she couldn't completely put into words... yet.

~The End~