It was days like this that made Andy utterly exhausted. The case they had just wrapped up hadn't been an easy one. A man had killed one of his employees and hid her body in the trunk of his car. Her boyfriend reported her missing, but it wasn't until after they had found her in the office parking lot that the case had went from critical missing to first degree murder. It took them awhile to pin it on the boss, but once he confessed, they agreed to life in prison deal instead of going for the death penalty. Andy didn't think it was enough.

After he completed his paperwork on the case, he decided he really needed to go to a meeting. The case had been difficult for him, and he needed to go and let out some of his frustrations. When it was his turn to speak, Andy told everyone at the meeting about how he had listened to the weeping boyfriend say that in the time he and his girlfriend knew each other, in the months they had been dating, he still hadn't told her he loved her. Now she was gone, and she never knew how he felt. Confessing about his day had made him feel better, but it wasn't what he needed. What he needed was a drink.

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The grubby table his cranberry juice was sitting on was an old favorite of his. Back in his drinking days, Andy would sit at that very table after a particularly difficult case and drink until he couldn't think anymore. Every once in awhile he would go back to that table and have a cranberry juice and thank God that he wasn't that man anymore. Tonight, he sat thinking about his past and his future, and all the things he had and was missing out on.

"Don't get too lost in your thought, Lieutenant," a husky voice shook him from his thoughts and caused him to look up.

"Captain?" Andy asked, shocked to see her standing beside his table, "Didn't expect to see you here."

"I could say the same about you," she looked past him and to his drink.

"Its cranberry juice," he shrugged, looking at the glass in her hand, "And you?"

A blush crept up her neck as she looked down at her drink and then back to him. "Whiskey," she answered, setting it down on the table and sliding into the booth across from him. Andy was surprised by her bold move, but he certainly wasn't going to complain about it.

"I never pictured you as a whiskey drinker."

"Usually I drink wine," she nodded, "but once every other month, I get out of my dress and heels and put on jeans and a tank top, and I come to this sleazy bar and I order a whiskey and forget about being a LAPD captain and remember that I am my own person." Andy watched the muscles of her throat flex as she took a smooth sip of her drink before leaning back in the booth, carefully eyeing the man across from her. "So, what's your excuse?"

Andy chuckled at that. He really didn't have an excuse, and he really didn't want to give her the honest answer. He smiled and looked down at his cranberry juice. "I come here to think sometimes."

"To this place?" Sharon asked.

Andy nodded. "Yeah. I used to come here a lot when I drank. When we had a tough case, I would come here to forget it. Now I come here to remind myself of how stupid I was back then." Sharon reached across the table and laid her hand on top of his.

"Andy, you were never stupid. Was drinking like that right? No, of course not. Did you make some mistakes? Probably. I can assure you, though, you weren't stupid."

"You sure about that?" he grinned at her.

"I'm sure. Now, about ten years ago, with all of those FID investigations I had to run on you, that's a different story," she smile, pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, "You were a pain in my ass back then."

Andy brought his hand up to his chest, pretending to be offended, "Such language, Sharon!" She rolled her eyes at him, a grown man child, and shook her head.

"I told you, I come here to remember that I'm my own person," she looked across the table and sighed. Andy looked far too sad, too wrapped up in his thoughts. She gripped his hand tighter and moved to stand up beside the table, "Come on, Lieutenant," she said, dragging out the her words, "Dance with me."

"Dance?" Andy raised an eyebrow, "You and me?"

She nodded, tugging him towards her, "Yes, dance!" He stood up and she laughed as she hauled his body against her and led them towards the floor.

"Are you sure you want to dance with me?" he asked, wrapping his arm about her waist.

"Remember Nicole's wedding?" she spoke into his ear, her lips gently brushing the edge of it, "We danced all night long." She pulled back and Andy could see a glimmer in her eyes. He didn't know if it was the whiskey or something else. A shudder ran though his own body, and he could have sworn he had been hit by lightning.

"I remember it well," he smiled. He had remembered it well. Andy had gone out on a limb when he asked her, but when she said yes, he thought his heart was going to explode from the joy. It was an event he wouldn't have missed for anything, he couldn't believe he was ever considering not going. Of course it helped that he had the most gorgeous woman besides Nicole at his side all night long. Sharon wore a dark blue dress that stopped just above the knee. It was synched in at the waist and had a v-neck that showed off just the appropriate amount of cleavage. Her hair was pulled up, aside from a few loose curls that hung beside her face. He had never seen a lovelier sight. "You looked beautiful that night. Even more than usual." Sharon blushed, looking down at Andy's tie.

"Thank you," she reached her had up, running her fingers along the lapel on his jacket, "I'm glad you invited me."

"Me too," he nodded, pulling her closer to him. They swayed together in comfortable silence, aside from the sounds buzzing around them. As Andy held Sharon in his arms, he couldn't help but think that she had walked into that bar from a reason. He didn't know it yet, but she came in like a speeding train, and he was a man tied up on the tracks with no time to get out of the way before he got hit. Who was he kidding? She had already hit him, right in the heart, he just didn't know how to tell her.

The band that was playing in the front of the bar, and Sharon had pulled away from Andy slightly, bringing him back to reality. "Do you mind if I join you?" she asked, smiling up at him.

"Oh, now you ask?" he laughed, dragging her to his table with him. "You already sat here, insisted I dance with you," he paused, letting her slide into the booth and then this time sliding in beside her.

"Oh, I insisted, did I?" her eyes were sparkling as she took a drink, her lips wet with the liquid. Andy swallowed hard and tried to get his mind off of licking the wetness from her lips.

"You did," he nodded. She shrugged and smiled, lifting her empty glass when the waiter walked by to show she wanted another. Andy grinned, absolutely amazed by the stunning woman beside him. He took a deep breath and placed his hand gently on her knee, afraid that she would walk out on him. Instead, she smiled at him and rested her hand on top of his, her thumb rubbing the inside of his wrist.

"I'm sorry about today," she spoke quietly, "I know it wasn't an easy case for any of us."

"It wasn't your fault," he shrugged, "In fact, you did great. I just feel so bad for Jason," he paused, allowing the waiter to reach across them to hand Sharon another whiskey on the rocks. She took a sip and stared at him, intently listening to his story, "That poor kid. He loved her so much."

"I know," she nodded, "I could see it in the way he talked about her. Its always hard, handling a notification like that." She tugged Andy's hand a little bit, and he moved it farther up her leg so that it was now resting on her thigh, "I'm sorry it was you."

"Its really okay, Sharon," he squeezed her thigh lightly, "I listened to him talk for awhile, and I think that's what he needed," she nodded, her head resting in the hand that wasn't on top of Andy's, "He never told her that he loved her. That was the hardest part for him."

"Oh," she spoke softly, looking down at her drink and then to him, "You don't mind, do you? That I'm drinking?"

"Not at all," Andy shook his head, "I'm used to Provenza, remember?" he laughed, his eyes lit up by the light he saw in hers.

"Of course," Sharon threw her head back as she laughed, "How could I ever forget?" She took another sip of her drink and looked up at Andy, his eyes were locked on hers. A flush was making its way up her chest, a new glimmer was shining in her eyes. She leaned forward just a little. When she did, Andy moved his hand to her hip, his body taking control over his brain. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers. It began as a gentle pressure, but as he licked at her lips and could taste the whiskey that remained there, he couldn't control himself. He pushed his tongue past her parted lips and dug his other hand into her hair. Her hand came to rest on his chest, her nails gently digging into his shirt. When the need for air became too great they separated, a smile filling Sharon's face. Andy brushed his thumb gently across her cheek, searching her eyes for something, but he wasn't sure exactly what, yet.

"Was that okay?" he asked, brushing his thumb across her bottom lip. She nodded, flicking her eyes down to his lips and then back up to meet his gaze.

"It was more than alright," she grinned, moving closer to him and nudging her knee against his thigh. When he took in a sharp breath, she knew he was getting the message. "Rusty's gone for the night," she panted, still breathless from their kiss. Andy smiled to himself and shook his head, he couldn't believe that this was the same Sharon Raydor that he worked with, but he was enjoying this side of her far too much. He reached into his pocked and grabbed his wallet, throwing some money onto the table to cover their tab and then stood up, holding his hand out for her.

"You sure?" he asked, pulling her to him and wrapping his arm around her shoulder.

"Andy," she wrapped her arm around his waist, squeezing his hip gently, "If you don't take me home, I'll find someone who will," she looked up at him and smirked, "But I don't think that would be as much fun as going home with you."

"And why is that?" he smirked.

"Because you're the only one here that I love enough to go home with."