When are we going to go see daddy?"

Andy looked down at the little boy staring up at her with his big, hopeful green eyes. She knelt down, getting eye level with the small boy, so she could wipe the smudges of chocolate from his cheek. She gave him her signature smile, and stood again, offering her hand. He happily took it, and the pair began to make their way out of the park.

"Well, maybe we can go see him this weekend," she chuckled, watching as the little boy lit up with a bright smile of his own, "but until then, you can call him tonight before bed. Maybe he'll even read you a bedtime story."

"Yeah! I wanna hear batman," the boy shouted enthusiastically, bouncing a little with each step he took.

"Of course you do, Braden," Andy chuckled.

The duo chatted happily about what they would have for dinner, until Braden was nearly knocked down by a set of twins chasing after a very large dog, with a woman chasing after them. She pulled Braden out of the was just in time for 2 men with cameras to fly passed them as well. The 5 year old looked stunned, his eyes wide and unblinking as he struggled to register what just happened. Andy, however was already moving into action as the dog turned back, dodging it's owners as it came back towards them. She reached out, her timing perfect, and grabbed the leash that was dragging behind the dog. When the dog stopped, she breathed a sigh of relief. Getting dragged around by a giant Saint Bernard wasn't on her list of things to do today. Braden was hiding behind her leg by the time the twins and the woman made it over to them. The three of them were panting, but the twins were grinning brightly.

"Patricia!"

"You got her!"

They both began to pet the dog, who decided the middle of the street was a great resting place. Andy handed the leash back to the girl closest to her, giving her a smile.

"That's a big dog you got there," she chuckled, "you should be careful."

"Thank you for catching her," the woman spoke up, "she usually doesn't run off like that, I'm not sure what's gotten into her lately."

"It's no problem," Andy waved off the thanks.

"I'm Caroline, and this is my little sister Cassidy," The twin on the right announced, much to her sister's annoyance.

"It's only by 10 minutes! It doesn't even count," Cassidy glared at her sister.

Andy noticed Caroline had more of an oval shaped face, while Cassidy's face was slightly more round. She looked at the twins in amusement as they bickered.

"Well, I'm Andrea, but everyone calls me Andy. And this is Braden," Andy looked down at the little boy currently looking at the dog cautiously, "say hi, Bud."

He looked at the twins with a bashful smile, moving farther behind Andy's leg,"...hi."

"Hi, Braden," Cassidy waved happily.

"Thanks for catching Patricia, Andy! Mom would have killed us if she got lost again," Caroline offered her a grateful smile.

"It's no problem," Andy shrugged.

"Andy, ice cream," Braden completely forgot the giant dog or the other people around him, he was now focused on the ice cream cart that was leaving the park.

"Braden, you just had a chocolate bar," Andy shook her head.

"Pleeeaaase?"

Andy groaned, unable to resist his pout and watery eyes. She shook her head, pulling out her wallet. His smile immediately returned, and he was once again bouncing. Andy pulled out a 20 dollar bill, and looked over at the other people that were with them.

"Ice cream anyone? Or maybe a water," Andy chuckled, "it looks like you guys worked up a sweat."

The twins immediately turned to the woman, who clearly knew she was outnumbered," can we Cara? Please?"

"Ok! But after this we have to get back. Patricia needs another bath before your mother gets home," Cara sighed.

"Yeah!"

"Go ahead, I'll hold the leash. We don't want her trying to take your ice cream," Andy took the leash again, watching them rush over with the money.

She and Cara followed, taking a moment to enjoy the silence. She looked over at the woman, and figured she wasn't their mother. The way she spoke led Andy to believe she was an aunt or possibly the Nanny. Since she looked nothing like the twins, Andy assumed the latter was more likely.

"They seem like a handful," Andy chuckled, watching the girls argue over getting the same flavor of ice cream while Braden was quite happy to smear his face with his own strawberry ice cream.

"Oh yes, but they're worth it. Of all the children I've taken care of over the years, these two are the ones I've become quite attached to," Cara smiled fondly.

"That's amazing," Andy returned the smile, before her phone went off.

After taking the call, she was forced to excuse herself and Braden, but offered an invitation to have a play date the following day. That seemed to placate the twins, who hadn't wanted her to go. She rushed them home, where her best friend Lily was waiting for them. After she changed, she gave Braden a goodbye kiss, thanked Lily and headed into work.

The next afternoon, Braden was practically bouncing off the walls in excitement. He didn't make friends easily, due to his shy nature, but he had immediately taken a shine to the twins, despite the 2 year age difference. He even warmed up to their dog, who had terrified him upon their first encounter. Andy was amazed that he had become so comfortable so quickly. She felt guilty that she had to cut their time short, but duty called.

"Is it time now, Andy," Braden asked for the 10th time, looking at the clock he had just recently learned to read.

Andy chuckled, glancing at her watch, "yeah, buddy. Are you all ready?"

She had just arrived home 20 minutes before, and hadn't had time to change out of her work clothes, which consisted of dark, navy blue fatigues, with a lighter blue crew neck shirt and her black combat boots. She opted out of wearing her jacket, since it was a sunny day.

"Ok, I'm ready," Braden announced, dressed in his best blue Ralph Lauren Polo shirt, with his favorite pair of tan shorts.

Andy raised an eyebrow at his sudden need to dress up. She chuckled to herself, knowing he was clearly dressed to impress. He was clearly his father's son, no doubt about it.

"Ok, Bud. Let's head out," she grabbed his hand, and they left her apartment.

They decided to walk to the park, since it was only 5 minutes away. Cara texted hee the night before to confirm the kids' play date, and to inform her the girls' mother would be the one taking them, since it was her day off. Andy didn't mind, and was a little curious about the mother of such big personalities.

"There they are! C'mon, Andy," Braden tugged her along, after spotting the redheads.

The girls heard his heavy footfalls, and turned to greet them. The woman with them turned as well, and Andy was momentarily distracted by her beauty. Her step faulted just slightly, but years of training allowed her to easily get back on track. She offered her hand to the woman, who took it lightly. The woman was eyeing her up, analyzing every detail. It set Andy on edge, but she forced herself to stay calm. A year ago, that would have been a trigger for her, but she's become more relaxed and adjusted to such things.

"Hi, you must be Miranda," She smiled brightly, "I'm Andrea, but you can call me Andy."

"Andrea," Miranda tested the name out, finding she quite liked the sound of it on her lips.

The reaction startled her a little, but she brushed it off. Besides, there was no way she was going to call this beautiful woman Andy, of all things. The thought of it was ridiculous.

"I see you're in the military," Miranda tried to change the course of her thoughts, as the children ran off to play on the swings.

"10 years, officially. 14 unofficially, ma'am," Andy grinned, quite proud of the achievement.

"And how does one serve unofficially," Miranda chuckled, watching the woman in amusement.

"I joined ROTC the summer before I started high school. It goes into my records, but I technically wasn't enlisted until I turned 17. But once you're in, some people in the navy would consider that time served," Andy shrugged.

"That's very honorable," Miranda sounded slightly impressed, Andy noted.

She truck Andy was the type that wasn't very easily impressed. Actually, now that Andy was really looking at her, she got the feeling that she had seen her before. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but the silver haired woman seemed like someone she knew. Although, she doubted she would forget someone like her. It bothered her that she couldn't remember, and the feeling lingered throughout the rest of her day.

Hey everyone! This is just a little idea I've been playing around with. Let me know if I should continue with it, and thanks for reading!