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Chapter 2

Andy stood next to his bed looking down at the three ties he had laid out in front of him; gray, green or blue. He'd changed out of the light brown suit he'd worn to work and put on a black one, with a white shirt, and now was torn about what color tie to wear.

The sudden ringing of his phone on the bedside table brought him out of his thoughts and he leaned over to look at the screen. The instant Provenza's name flashed at Andy he considered ignoring it, but he knew his partner would keep calling until he eventually picked up.

"Yeah," he answered abruptly, putting the phone on speaker.

"It's me, what are you doing?"

Provenza had nagged Andy all day until he had finally relented and told his partner that Sharon had agreed to go out with him that night. Flynn knew this was another attempt by the older man to try and persuade him to cancel the date but Andy wasn't going to do that, no matter what Provenza said.

They hadn't really gotten into the details much at work. Apart from it being the end of the day when Andy had finally shared the secret, he'd refused to get into any sort of conversation with Provenza with other people around. This was meant to be about him and Sharon, without any input from the rest of the LAPD.

Andy sighed. "I'm getting ready to go out."

"So you're still going?"

"Of course I'm still going, why wouldn't I be?" Andy snapped, turning his attention back to the ties, picking out the gray one and draping it behind his neck.

"I don't think you understand exactly what you're doing, because if you did, you wouldn't be doing it."

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Flynn, it's the Captain." Povenza's tone matched Andy's, his irritation unmistakable. "Do you not remember the amount of times you went head to head with that woman? You're not going to make me rehash all the stuff she's put you through in the past are you?"

"That's behind us. She's changed since she's been with major crimes, she's one of us now. I've changed too, and she's helped with that. And what are you talking about anyway, you two get along."

"Yes, we get along in a work environment, nothing more. That is how it should be."

"Look, I know what I'm doing alright. I get why you're worried but you don't need to be, I'm not going to hurt her."

"I'm not worried about you hurting her, I'm worried about you pissing her off."

"You know, you're a real great friend. I can always count on you to have my back."

"That's what I'm trying to do! I'm trying to save you the heartache, and the rest of us from the repercussions of you screwing up."

Andy rolled his eyes, he'd heard enough and if this went on much longer he was going to be late. Maybe that was what his partner wanted but he intended to be there on time.

"I gotta go. I need to finish getting ready and then I'm picking Sharon up."

"Flynn!" Provenza shouted as Andy picked the phone up. "I'm warning you –"

"I'm going!" Andy interrupted before ending the call.

He shook his head and threw the phone down on the bed. With a sigh he turned and sat down, running his hand over his head. He hoped he was doing the right thing. It had been a long time since he was as sure about something as he was now about his feelings for Sharon. With all the gracefulness and beauty of the woman that she was she had secretly stolen away his heart, without either of them realizing it was happening.

And now it was too late for him to fight against his emotions.

He couldn't deny that he was nervous. Not about being around Sharon in a different setting, they were used to that and felt comfortable around each other. What he was worried about was doing exactly as his partner feared; either upsetting her unintentionally or pushing too hard for them to be together.

Sharon had a lot going on in her life right now and he didn't want to be another source of stress for her. In fact he wanted the exact opposite, to be there for her more. He wanted her to lean on him and let him help to shoulder some of her burdens.

Andy knew this evening would most likely be his only chance, and as sure as he was about a relationship with Sharon, she had only given him mixed signals. How would he cope if she said that there would be nothing beyond tonight's date? He was pretty certain that he couldn't just move on and forget about it, about her.

If he screwed things up tonight there really would be no going back.

"So, no pressure then," he mumbled to himself. "You either get the girl, or the girl and your partner make your life a living hell…piece of cake."

Although he'd thought about the consequences of things going wrong, the truth was Andy knew there was something between him and Sharon. All it really hung on was whether or not she was willing to accept her feelings and trust him. Maybe after their history he had no right to ask that of her, but if their time together over the last several months had taught him anything it was that she was forgiving and that she understood him a lot better than most people.

Moving into the bathroom, Andy checked his reflection over in the mirror as he fixed his tie. He'd never been one to hold things back, he wore his heart on his sleeve and Sharon knew that. If she did care about him, then she accepted the hot-tempered and sarcastic side of him as much as the sensitive and caring side she'd seen more of lately. There was no need for him to be anything other than himself tonight, and with any luck that was who she wanted.

If he could make sure their talk went okay and she enjoyed dinner, then Andy was sure a kiss at the end of the night would take care of the rest. This connection between them had been building for some time but it was a physical touch that had broken through the walls both of them had put up. He was counting on that same contact tonight to help try and make his relationship with Sharon into something more permanent.

With a final deep breath he straightened his tie, picking up his phone, keys and wallet on the way out.

With a hand resting on the kitchen counter Sharon steadied herself as she lifted her left foot up to put on her shoe, her gaze wandering to where Rusty was seated at the table playing chess on his computer.

"So you're going out on another date with Lieutenant Flynn?" he asked, his focus shifting from the screen in front of him to Sharon.

"Last night was not a date, Rusty. I was merely doing him a favor so he could spend some more time with his family."

"And tonight is a favor as well?"

"In a way it is, yes."

Rusty raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "Really? Because that's not what it looks like, it looks like you're getting dressed up for a date."

She had chosen a black dress that hugged her curves and exposed a bit of cleavage as well as showing a decent amount of her legs, but overall it wasn't too revealing. She had changed three times, not exactly sure what signals she wanted to give Andy.

Despite knowing the path they may be headed down could be fraught with disaster her brain and her heart were pulling her in two different directions. It was not something she was used to, at least not to this degree. Giving in to what she wanted would be easy if there was just herself to consider. Not only did she have Rusty to think about now, but working as closely as she did with Andy and having a relationship would impact on more than just the two of them.

Sharon answered Rusty with a glare, even though he was correct. It was a date, Sharon knew it, and apparently so did Rusty, but she wasn't prepared to have a discussion with him about it. Not yet. Not when she didn't fully understand what was happening herself. What she did understand was that her world had been thrown into complete chaos when she and Andy had kissed the previous evening.

For weeks now she'd kept her feelings for her loyal lieutenant buried as deep as possible. It was a complication she couldn't afford, not with everything else that was going on. But the instant his lips had touched hers everything had come rushing to the surface and the cracks in her crumbling resolve were widening with every passing hour.

"So should I wait up for you?" Rusty teased.

Sharon shot him another death glare but answered his question with one of her own. "Would you prefer I take you to stay with Lieutenant Provenza for the evening?"

Rusty's eyes widened in horror. As much as he had come to like the lieutenant, spending endless hours with him during the day was enough. Even though there was an officer guarding the door to the condo and one down in the lobby, at least Rusty had some privacy here and he was free to play games or watch tv.

"I'm not complaining," he answered defensively. "I guess I'm just trying to understand…but I get it, it's none of my business."

"Rusty," Sharon said softly, walking over to him and putting a hand on his shoulder. "It's not that." She took a moment to organize her thoughts before continuing. "You understand better than anybody how some things take time to work out in your head before you can talk about them."

Rusty twisted on the chair to face her. She had answered his questions without saying the words and from the look of guilt on his face she could tell he understood.

"Okay. I'm sorry."

"No apology necessary. You remember what I said about not lying to you and just needing time to assess all the facts?"

He nodded.

"This could also be one of those times. If there's something you need to know, something that I think will affect you then I will tell you."

"I know."

Sharon smiled at him. Although at times Rusty could be prone to whining and outbursts, he was also capable of being compassionate. He was growing, and she was proud of the young man he was turning into.

"Do you need anything before I go?" she asked, looking at the time on her phone. Andy would be here any minute.

"Nope," he said, returning his attention back to the computer, "got food and entertainment so I'm all set."

"Okay, well you call me if you need me."

"Sharon, I'll be fine, just ask the guy outside the door with the gun."

The sound of her phone vibrating on the table made her jump, her heart thudding in her chest, both from being startled and due to who she knew was calling.

"Andy?" she answered, her voice uneven.

"Sharon, I'm downstairs."

She had asked him to call when he arrived so she could walk down to his car on her own. The officers guarding Rusty were the same ones from the night before when Andy had picked her up to take her to see the nutcracker. Some might say she was paranoid, but Sharon just thought she was being cautious. Fewer people knowing she was going out with him again would hopefully mean less chance of problems arising.

"Okay, I'll be there in a minute."

"Are you sure you don't want me to come and get you? I'd feel better if I did."

"Andy, I'm only coming down in the elevator."

"I know but…it doesn't feel right, I should come and get you."

She couldn't help but smile at him. "Maybe next time."

"Really?" he asked, clearly surprised by her answer.

"We'll see. I'll be there in a minute."

She ended the call and looked at Rusty, who was doing his best to hide a grin. "I won't be late," she told him, picking up her bag and a shawl to go over her shoulders. "Call if you need me."

"I will," he answered, knowing she wanted to hear him say it. "Have a nice time."

"I will."

As Sharon walked towards the door she felt an unfamiliar stirring in her stomach. Whether it was nerves or excitement she couldn't tell, maybe it was a little of both. There was no doubting that certain uncontrollable reactions in her body were enough to tell her things had changed between her and Andy.

What she chose to do about that, where she told him their future may be headed, would be decided tonight. One way or another.

TBC…