A\N: Many thanks to kadi219 and kate04us. All mistakes are my own.
"Joe's Bar?" Sharon said, wrinkling her nose as they all got out of the cab. She and a group of friends had gone out for her bachelorette party, although really, Sharon was still not entirely sure her going out had been a willing thing. When they had brought up the idea of a party Sharon suggested a girls weekend in Napa, touring vineyards, drinking wine, and eating a plethora of salmon and desserts. Her idea had quickly been shot down when her small, yet very insistent group of friends found out that she had never had a proper bachelorette party.
When she and Jack had married many years ago, they had eloped in Las Vegas. Jack's family had never liked her and were very vocal about it. Her family, well, they thought Jack to be something of a male gold digger; only after her trust fund and not interested in being a husband. Despite both of their families' reservations they headed out to Vegas from the east coast and were married in a neon lit chapel a few days later.
"Oh c'mon, Sharon!" said her friend Sara as she wrapped an arm around Sharon's waist, practically dragging her towards the entrance. "Joe's is fun! It's low key, and has reasonably priced drinks!" Sara had been her roommate during their undergraduate studies at Northwestern, and they had managed to keep in touch over the years. Sara had always been a bit of an eccentric party girl, staying out until all hours of the night and always seemed to have somewhere to go. She was almost the exact opposite of Sharon, which was probably why they had stayed such good friends.
Sharon rolled her eyes. "I've investigated plenty of murders at these types of places," she retorted. The last place she wanted to be was in some "low key" bar that would probably glow under a forensics UV light when the LAPD would inevitably appear.
"And you all have investigated plenty in Beverly Hills and the Palisades too," laughed Andrea. "But that wouldn't stop you from going there in a heartbeat!" she continued as she held the door open for the group. The sounds of loud chatter and music poured out of the club as they headed in.
The group slid into a u-shaped booth near the bar and Sharon found herself stuck in the middle. Glancing around the bar she noticed a variety of people. Some couples, some single men clearly looking to hit at the single women who were leaning against the bar. Her many experiences in law enforcement told Sharon that the women who seemed very interested in the men would probably leave with them, but only for the right price.
A waiter came by to take their drinks, and Sara very enthusiastically ordered a round of lemon drop shots. Sharon pursed her lips, but said nothing. One or two shots wouldn't kill her…probably. Go out and have fun for once, sweetheart! Andy had said with a wink as she left that evening. Break a few rules! He had laughed as she rolled her eyes and headed out the door.
"And one shot for the bride to be!" the waiter said, leaning over the table and plopping the shot glass in front of her. "I'll be by in a little bit, ladies, if you need anything else!" he said before he disappeared into the crowd.
The women raised their glasses into the center of the table, "To the lovely bride to be and her sexy Italian fiancé! Long may they have love and a lot of hot sex!" Sara shouted over the music. The group burst out laughing and clinked glasses before downing the shot.
The cold liquid almost burned the back of Sharon's throat. She couldn't remember the last time she had done a shot and she felt like it was about to rush straight to her head. Setting the glass back on the table she turned her head and caught the eye of a longhaired, blonde woman in military attire. It looked like the entire booth was filled with military personnel, probably on leave.
They were a good looking group and much younger than she was. Catching a few words of their conversation, she assumed they were probably in the Air Force. The blonde was loud, almost to the point of being brash. The group laughed, and one of the dark haired men playfully called her Starbuck and told her to shut up. The group dissolved into laughter once more, bantering back and forth at each other's expense. Sharon wondered how much coffee this woman had to drink in order to be nicknamed after a chain of coffee shops.
She must have been staring longer than she realized, as the blonde woman caught her eye and winked. Sharon blushed and turned back to her table, trying to figure out what they were discussing now. She had always had a weakness for men in uniform. Women, too, although she would never admit it. She had kissed a female classmate once at boarding school, but it had never gone further than that. The Catholic Church taught that premarital activities were a sin, let alone with another women. Her fantasies about other women and men, although on occasion both at the same time, had stayed firmly in her head.
Another round of shots hit the table, this one called "Alien Baby", and she wasn't quite sold on drinking the green concoction that was given to her. She lifted the glass and downed the contents along with the group of women she was seated with. Whether she'd still consider them friends after surviving tonight remained to be seen. She could feel the alcohol starting to hit her hard, especially after the couple of fruity drinks had at dinner.
"Okay, okay let me out," Sharon said with a smile. "I need to use the bathroom!" Her friends scooted their way out of the booth, and she started weaving through the crowded bar. Making her way down a dimly lit hallway, Sharon found the women's room and pushed the door open. Thankfully, the bathroom was empty save for one stall in use. Taking the first stall, she struggled with the latch and finally got it to stay. Her hands were clumsy, trying to pull up her black dress and keep it up while she pulled down her panties. Finally sitting down, Sharon leaned forward and ran her hands through her hair.
"I am going to kill them," she thought, wadding up toilet paper and wiping between her legs. She wobbled as she stood, pulling her panties up, and smoothing down her dress. Andy would be amused no doubt. He thought she was funny the one and only time he had seen her really tipsy. It probably didn't help that she had started singing at him and twirling around the room. It was embarrassing and not a state she liked to be in.
Unhooking the latch, Sharon walked across the small room and leaned against the bathroom sink, her head spinning from the copious amounts of alcohol she had consumed. So much for insisting that her bachelorette party not get out of control. Technically, she had not ordered any of the drinks for herself, so she would be pleading her innocence to Andy tomorrow while dealing with the inevitable hangover that was bound to happen. As she was rinsing the last of the soap off of her hands, the door to one of the stalls opened with a loud squeak and out sauntered the blonde military woman she had caught the eye of earlier.
"You could just say 'hi' instead of staring," the woman said, catching Sharon staring at her by way of the mirror. She had noticed the brunette woman staring at her earlier and had attributed her gaze to the fact that she was being loud. No surprise there, although most people would just glare or outright tell her to shut up. This woman seemed almost curious, however.
Sharon blushed and reached for a paper towel with which to dry her hands. "Hi," she muttered, giving the other woman guilty smile.
"I'm Kara by the way," the blonde said, shutting off the water and wiping her hands on her pants.
"I'm Sharon," she responded, tossing the used paper towel into the trash.
The blonde smirked at her "Celebrating your bachelorette party?" she said, noting the white sash which had the word 'bride' scrawled across it in gold cursive. Andrea had forced her to don it after dinner, and her other friends as they laughed while to put a tiara on her head as well. It was a stupid thing, something that Sharon felt was not meant for a woman her age to be wearing. She had quickly shoved the tiara in her purse, but hadn't gotten around to ditching the sash.
Sharon's felt like she was close to the floating stage of drunkenness, and she was desperately trying to act as if she was still in full control of herself. She knew what the socially acceptable response to Kara's question was. That she was excited and her wedding was coming up soon and all she wanted to do was just get drunk with her friends. Even at her age that seemed to be the response of most soon-to-be brides celebrating bachelorette parties. The words did not seem to want to come, however, so she merely nodded and shrugged in response.
Kara stepped towards Sharon and reached out towards the sash. She grabbed it and gently tugged Sharon towards her. "You don't seem excited about it," she noted.
"I am," Sharon said, standing a bit straighter. Who was this woman to start analyzing her feelings about her relationship and upcoming marriage in the middle of the ladies room? "I'm just not a huge fan of parties, especially where I'm being made to wear a ridiculous getup." Her words were jilted and awkward, almost to the point of sounding petulant.
Kara chuckled. "So take it off," she said. Kara had run into her fair share of women like Sharon. Uptight, always needing to be in control even when it was clear they weren't. Behaving in a way that was seemingly expected of them even if it meant wearing a cheap sash for an evening.
Sharon said nothing in response, standing nearly rigid in silence, the only sound was the pounding music from outside that was thankfully muffled by the bathroom door. Her heart felt as if it was trying to match the rhythm and she almost wondered if the other woman could hear it.
If Kara could tell how nervous Sharon was, she didn't acknowledge it. Without saying anything, Kara lifted the sash over Sharon's head and tossed it into the trash on top of the ever growing heap of used paper towels.
Sharon could feel her heart pounding as Kara stepped back towards her, her hand sliding slowly up Sharon's arm. "He's a lucky man," she whispered as her hand reached Sharon's cheek.
Laying her hand over Kara's, Sharon's instincts were telling her to flee, but the alcohol kept her rooted to the spot, curious as to what might happen next. She had never been with a woman before, not that the thought had never crossed her mind.
Sensing Sharon's hesitation to leave, Kara stepped closer and leaned into her. Their lips met in a soft kiss, lips slowly finding each other until they moved in quick motion against one another. Kara felt Sharon deepen the kiss and stepped even closer to her. Kara's hand found its way into Sharon's thick hair, her fingers becoming tangled and lost.
Sharon's entire body felt electrified as they kissed. They started out chaste and hesitant, but had quickly evolved and sank deeper and deeper into something more passionate. She felt the other woman's tongue grace her lips, and instinctively, she parted them. Their tongues swirled around each others as their bodies pressed closer together.
Kara remorsefully pulled herself away from the other woman, eyes glazed over and barely able to focus. "You know," she whispered to Sharon, "you remind me of someone. Someone I used to know a long time ago." Her hand lightly traced Sharon's cheek before grabbing her hand and pulling her into the end stall. Kara latched the door behind them and turned to face Sharon, almost searching her eyes as if to figure out who she really was.
She couldn't quite place where she thought she might have known Sharon from. She certainly wasn't military, that's for sure. Private contractor or government perhaps? Not that is mattered in the long run. Kara's eyes raked over the woman's body. A dark dressed hugged the curves of her hips and provided a tantalizing view of her cleavage. She seemed incredibly nervous, but not scared.
Sharon leaned back against the cubicle wall, and feeling emboldened by the alcohol induced rush, she pulled the blonde woman towards her. She swallowed hard, feeling the cold of the wall seep through her clothing. Never in her life did she imagine that she would be intimate with a complete stranger in a bathroom stall of all places. Normally, she didn't even like to use public bathrooms to relieve herself in. Spending her entire career had opened her eyes to just how disgusting her fellow women could be; but in this moment it didn't seem to matter.
Their lips met again, but this time it was not gentle. They were heated and frenzied kisses and pecks. Kara's hands found their way to Sharon's waist and slowly slid up her torso until they reached her breasts. Kara could feel the other woman's hardening nipples beneath her fingertips as they splayed across Sharon's chest.
Her thumb moved slowly across Sharon's chest, caressing each breast and teasing her nipples. She felt a dull ache grow between her legs, wishing for a moment they were some place more private. Kara had underestimated Sharon's eagerness. At most Kara thought she might have a quick makeout session with the woman, but the way Sharon's hands were digging into her ass told her otherwise.
Nudging Sharon's legs apart, Kara's hands slid down the other woman's body until they found her thighs. "Have you ever done this with another woman?" she asked, noticing the brunette's legs were starting to tremble.
"No," Sharon said, choking out a whisper. She had certainly imagined what it would be like, having another woman in her bed. How her hands would feel sliding up another woman's thighs. What it would be like to taste another woman instead of just herself?
Kara leaned in, softly kissing Sharon's neck as her hands found their way under Sharon's dress and up her thighs. She found the older woman's panties wet and pressed a single digit against her clit through the wet fabric. Kara moved her finger in a circular motion against Sharon as her mouth found its way up Sharon's neck and back to her lips.
This was one of Kara's favorite things to do with a woman. Tease them until they were soaked and begging. She traced the lines of come up and down Sharon's panties as they became wetter and wetter, loving the feel of come soaking through the lace. She nudged Sharon's legs farther apart and added a second finger, lazily tracing the patterns of the material while Sharon's body arched against her own.
Sharon felt as if she was going insane. The sick combination of alcohol and lust had her grinding against Kara. Her hands tangled in Kara's long, blonde hair as she fought back a moan. Any hesitation she may have had quickly left her as she pulled Kara's mouth back to her own and inserted her tongue into the younger woman's mouth.
"You're so fucking wet," she heard Kara whisper. Sharon couldn't remember the last time she had been this turned on. Maybe when she and Andy had first been dating, well before they told anyone else. The stolen glances in the Murder Room, the discrete sexting back and forth during case work when she should have been doing paperwork and he was supposed to be doing financial investigation. The forbiddenness of it all had made her aroused to the point of being uncomfortable the rest of the day until she was able to get home. She got off on the fact that Andy would tell her he was too hard to stand from his desk.
Her thoughts about her soon to be husband evaporated as she felt Kara slide one of her fingers into her pussy. She hooked one of her legs around Kara's calves and pulled her in close, burying her head in the blonde's neck as Kara's finger slid in and out of her. "More?" she barely heard Kara ask. Sharon nodded dumbly, hoping that no one she knew would walk into the bathroom looking for her.
She felt Kara slide a second finger inside of her and nearly lost it. Shamelessly, she fucked the younger woman's hand, digging her nails into Kara's shoulder's, and Kara's thumb found her clit. Kara peppered her neck with kisses as Sharon bit her lower lip hard to keep from moaning loudly. Sharon could feel the tension building between her thighs as Kara relentlessly fucked her with her fingers.
Finally, Sharon felt herself slip over the edge. Her muscles contracted tightly around Kara's fingers and a strangled gasp escaped from her lips as she came. Kara removed her fingers from Sharon, and Sharon felt herself needy all of a sudden and wanting more. Shaking, she stood upright and looked at the other woman through clouded eyes. "Kara," she whispered as she swallowed hard. She watched as Kara licked the two fingers that had been buried within her moments before. "You taste amazing," she said as her tongue grazed over the come coated digits.
Sharon's reached out towards the other woman, finding the buckle above her jeans. Clumsily, she began to undo the belt, wanting to return the favor and make Kara come just like she had done only moments ago. As she finally unhooked the belt, the bathroom door opened and Sharon heard her name called.
Dammit, Andrea, she thought. "I'll be out in a minute!" she called back from the stall and sighed as she heard the door close behind her friend.
"Guess you gotta go, huh?" asked Kara as she bit her lip and looked at Sharon. There was an ever growing dull ache between her thighs. She wanted this woman's fingers inside her and maybe her mouth on her clit.
Sharon hummed in response and let her hands drop from Kara's belt. Inhaling, she gave the other woman one last kiss before exiting the stall. Congratulations on your wedding! she heard Kara shout as she exited the bathroom. Her hands curled into fists at her side and her nails dug into the palms of her hands. She had a difficult time focusing, trying to walk in a semi-normal manner back to her table. Drunk off of liquor and lust the whole world felt like it was one gigantic haze. As she slid back into the booth she could feel her wet panties rub against her still wet center. Her clit was almost throbbing and she regretted not staying longer.
The rest of the night was a blur, and the guilt of the whole evening didn't hit Sharon until the next morning as she was struggling to gain control of her stomach. She found herself kneeling in front of the toilet, hands firmly grasping the sides of the seat as the contents of the night before splattered into the bowl. Tentatively, she lay her head down on one side, past the point of caring about germs.
Hearing a soft knock on the door, she opened her eyes as Andy walked into the bathroom with a glass of water. She could tell he was struggling not to laugh. She was probably the last person he ever expected to lose control. Taking the glass from him, she sat back on the cool, tile floor of their bathroom and took a small sip.
"C'mon, sweetheart," Andy said, holding out a hand. "Let me help you off the floor."
Sharon reluctantly accepted it and pulled herself up. Taking a few jilted steps she made it to the bathroom sink and took another sip of water. Swishing it around in her mouth a few times she spat into the sink and looked up, catching him staring at her. It was an all too familiar memory of last night and it made her stomach churn.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, grasping the countertop. She couldn't bear to look at him, not like this. Sharon had spent the morning wracked with guilt, trying to decide if she should tell him about the previous night or not. Her group of friends had seemed none the wiser when she had finally reappeared from the bathroom. The rest of the evening, she had tried to keep an eye out for Kara, wondering if the woman had snuck out the back or maybe Sharon had just been that drunk that she never saw her back at the next table over with her friends. It was almost as if Kara had disappeared into thin air.
But she thought over and over about how she had felt all of the times that she had caught Jack cheating on her. How the realization of what he had done had nearly stopped her heart. How low her self-esteem had sunk when Jack had seemed more upset with her that she had found out than the fact that he had actually betrayed her. She had spent nights sobbing and days trying to hold it together at work and at home for her kids.
Eventually she had stopped asking but she still knew. She could smell perfume on him that wasn't hers, and the rumor mill at work didn't seem to care if "The Wicked Witch" heard their gossiping or not. She had turned to the church for support and had promised God and herself that she would never do the same to another human being. It was part of the reason she had taken her relationship with Andy so slow. Having to learn to trust someone again with her heart was much tougher than she had expected, especially with someone who had a reputation for being with so many different women.
Now, here she was, no better than her ex-husband. Drunk and apologizing in the early hours of the morning. Andy's fingertips ran over her back as he tried to calm her down. "Sorry for what?" he asked. "Sharon, I've had more than my fair share of drunk mornings. To be honest, I figured you'd probably come home drunk. It's not a big deal," he said.
Sharon shook her head. "Not the drinking," she muttered. She would have to tell him. They could not get married with this type of secret hanging over her head. She had to come clean and let him know the truth, but the truth felt trapped in her throat. Feeling Andy's arm supporting her, Sharon let herself be guided into their bedroom and sat down slowly on the bed.
Andy sat opposite her in an overstuffed chair she had placed in the corner of the room long before he had moved in. He leaned forward, letting his hands support his head as he watched her. God, she looks rough he thought to himself. Her normally neat hair was frizzed and dark circles compounded by lack of sleep and sliding mascara had formed under her eyes. His heart went out to her. He remembered all too well the long nights of drinking, feeling dazed and sick the next day. Even when he had not gone out and drank at home he still found himself begging Sandra for forgiveness.
"I was with someone last night," she finally admitted, voice shaking over every vowel and consonant as the truth spilled from her mouth.
It felt like the air had been sucked out of his lungs. "With someone? What do you mean with someone?" he countered. He waited for her to answer but Sharon said nothing in response. Andy was as if his chest was clenching around his heart. Sharon's voice echoed repeatedly in his head. He waited, letting a few brief, tense silence pass between them before he asked again.
"Sharon, tell me…" She could hear the rising anger in his voice. He was fighting to control it, but she knew him well. It was the same tone he used with suspects when they were withholding information. The same tone that normally ended with him punching a wall in the hallway and loudly decreeing that whomever was in the interview was a dirtbag. "Did you sleep with someone else?"
"Sort of…" she said, her voice a low whisper in the darkness of the room. She hadn't gone to bed with Kara, but what had happened between them she still wasn't sure how to define.
"Look, Sharon….you either slept with someone or you didn't," Andy said through gritted teeth. His anger was on the verge of exploding and they both knew it. He had never known Sharon to drink and lose control. Once, he could count only once, in their relationship where he saw her get a really tipsy. He had never seen her get flat out drunk and he never thought of her as the type to go behind his back and do something; especially not after what she had gone through during her marriage.
He thought back to the little comments she made, here and there when they had been having dinner or over lunch. Small remarks about Jack or marriage in general. He had heard the rumors, or sometimes stories straight from Jack, about the Raydor marriage. Hell, he and Jack would sometimes eye women up together at their favorite bars. The difference was, Andy never went farther than looking when he was still married.
She finally broke down one night and told him everything. They had been sitting on her balcony late at night. Sharon had been starting in on her second glass of wine when there was a lull in the conversation. And then she told him all that had transpired during her marriage to Jack. The rampant cheating and the way she felt when she found out. How it felt as if her heart had stopped beating and started to crumple in her chest.
Hands folded tightly together, Andy stared at her. Sharon's voice was echoing in his head. "I was with someone". "With someone". Over and over. Words kept trying to form on his lips and yet nothing was coming to him. Why wasn't she answering him?
Sharon finally broke down and told him what had transpired between her and Kara in the bar's bathroom the previous night. How Kara had kissed her and dragged her into a stall. How yes, it was consensual and that Kara had fingered her, but no, she did not reciprocate. She left out the part where she had wanted to, but Andrea had walked into the bathroom at that point looking for her. "I'm sorry, Andy," she said, wanting to reach out to him, but holding back.
She watched him stand from the chair and begin pacing back and forth across the opposite side of the room in silence. "Everyone warned me about you," Sharon whispered, watching him closely. "They said I was making a mistake. I heard all about your past, and the womanizing…" She paused for a moment, tears welling back up in her eyes. "Here we are, and you've never given me any reason to question your love, or your loyalty. They should have been warning you away from me."
Andy never fully understood what Sharon had meant when she said her heart felt like it crumpled, but in that moment he felt like his did. Grabbing the door handle he paused and looked back at her. "Yeah, maybe they should have," he spat before walking out of their bedroom and slamming the door behind him. His loud, angry footsteps echoed down the hallway. He wanted nothing more than to punch each and every photo she had hanging up. Shatter the glass all over the floor. He head was pounding and he could nearly feel the blood rushing through his veins. He grabbed his keys, opened the front door, and pulled the door shut as hard as he could against the frame.
Fin.