A/N: I'm a little ahead of my writing schedule so I decided to post a day early. Also, because I had to stop myself from adding more to this uverse. I stopped myself from adding a chapter in between and instead added two extra flashbacks. Let me know what you think :)

Paige could feel everyone's eyes on her as she walked through headquarters. Technically she hadn't quit her job when her maternity leave ended a year ago, but she was working part time, mostly doing consulting work or taking small cases. As the end of her maternity leave approached, she couldn't wrap her mind around the idea of going to work while her son experienced all his firsts at daycare.

Andrew.

Her perfect beautiful, baby boy. Finding out she was pregnant had been one of the worst days of her life. All she could think of was how everything had gone wrong. All the times she and Mike hadn't been careful. How they could barely be in the same room for five seconds before arguing. If they couldn't agree on where to get takeout from how could they possibly raise a baby? She had been so afraid she had done something to harm the baby before finding out she was pregnant. Despite the reassurances from her OB backed up by test results, she hadn't been convinced until she held Andrew for the first time.

If the day she found out she was pregnant was one of the worst days, the day she thought she lost the baby in a car accident was even worse. Even though she was seriously considering having an abortion, she really wanted to factor in Mike's opinion. But the idea of carrying and nurturing her unborn child and then handing the baby over to Mike, she wasn't sure she could do it. Even if the alternative was not having the baby at all. Despite all their issues, she never doubted that Mike would step up. Never doubted he would be an amazing father. But she doubted herself. Doubted she had any maternal instincts. Convinced herself she would be punished by the universe for swallowing balloons filled with heroin while pregnant. But when she woke up from the crash, all she could think about was the baby. How the life growing inside her was her baby. Mike's baby. And it was up to her to protect that baby.

Always.

Paige pressed her lips to the top of Andrew's forehead, shifting him in her arms as he squirmed. "We're gonna go see Daddy, and you two are gonna have so much fun together."

It was Mike's weekend to have Andrew. Not that she ever denied him access. They didn't have an official custody agreement. Andrew mostly stayed with her during the week and spent most of his weekends with Mike. But Mike made an effort to try and see him everyday, even if it was just on his lunch hour. Even though she and Mike were through romantically, they were friends again. Co-parents. They made decisions about Andrew together. They barely fought. The pregnancy forced them to work through their issues, but they had both been hesitant to start up again while she was pregnant. She had been serious when she told him that having a baby didn't fix them. But things were different now. She wondered if trying again was worth it. There was so much on the line this time around. If they tried and failed, Andrew would suffer the most. Maybe her son didn't have both of his parents in the same house, but he had both of them in his life. That was more than she could say for half of the kids in his storytime group.

A woman she didn't recognize smiled as she walked past them, then quickly looked away. Paige instinctively held her son closer, before telling herself she was overreacting. Andrew was safe here. But she started looking around the room for potential threats out of habit, and couldn't help but notice how many women were here today. Not that she was against women in the workplace. But she heard a rumor that Mike was dating someone at work. If he was, it didn't surprise her. He'd done it at least twice before that she was aware of. But he hadn't said anything. Not that he owed her an explanation. And she definitely hadn't asked. But as she walked down the hall, she categorized every woman she came across, searching for Mike's type. He definitely wouldn't have an affair with someone married. He wouldn't necessarily date someone more than a few years younger than him. But women were drawn to single, attractive men with babies and Mike definitely fit the bill. Most likely he would date a colleague, staying away from superiors and subordinates, not wanting to risk either interfering with his career. Paige shook her head as she approached Mike's office, it was none of her business who he was dating. Unless he brought her around Andrew, and he would tell her that.

She hoped.

They worked in the same building, with the same people. But not in the same department or even on the same floor. It would kill her to find out Mike was dating someone by seeing them together.

Paige stopped outside of Mike's office, knocking on the partially open door. She tensed when she saw a blonde woman sitting next to Mike, going over case files with him. The rumor she heard, mentioned Mike and some blonde. And if Mike had a type, blonde could be on the list. The last person Mike slept with before her was blonde. Abby could be an outlier. Mike looked up and motioned for her to come inside.

"Beth, hey - we'll finish this on Monday. Check in with Banks if you need anything," Mike said, handing her a file as he stood up to greet Paige and Andrew. "This is Paige, she's with the DEA. Paige, this is Beth."

"Hi," Paige said. Her eyes automatically checked Beth's left ring finger and she relaxed when she saw her wearing a wedding ring.

"This must be Andrew," Beth said. She offered him a small wave and smiled warmly at Paige before leaving.

"Hey there, buddy," Mike said as Andrew reached for him. "Hi."

Paige smiled at the pair as Andrew reached up to touch Mike's face, while he happily babbled. "Sorry we're a little late, traffic's horrible." Paige ruffled Andrew's sandy blonde hair while Mike made funny faces. She handed him a small stuffed bear which he happily grabbed. "Do you think his hair is too long?"

"It looks fine," Mike said, sternly looking Andrew in the eyes. Clear blue eyes that matched his own. "You got good hair genes, didn't you? The girls are gonna love your hair when you're older."

Paige rolled her eyes, "Keep telling yourself that, Mike," Paige teased. "Andrew's not the only one that needs a haircut." She motioned to his hair and he laughed. "I think he was flirting with a girl at storytime."

"Flirting?" Mike asked, looking impressed.

Paige lightly touched Andrew's face, smiling as he looked up from the toy in his hand. "He was following around this little girl, he offered her his juice box and everything."

"Juice box, huh? That's practically a promise ring at his age." Mike held up his hand, "Give me a high five, Andrew."

Andrew raised his hand up, laughing as MIke gently tapped his palm against his. "Juice?"

"Sorry, Andrew. No juice. Mommy was telling me all about your girlfriend. We can have juice with dinner."

"Don't encourage him. I don't want him turning into some womanizer." Paige reached in the diaper bag and handed Andrew his sippy cup filled with water.

"He's barely 18 months, I think he's fine. Besides, it's never too early to learn the art of flirting."

"Well, if the flirting gene is rolled in with that Warren hair gene, he's gonna need the extra practice."

"What?" Mike asked, offended. "I can flirt."

"Please. You waited a whole summer to kiss me."

"I had a girlfriend. But next summer I arrested you and you were all over me."

Paige shrugged, smiling as she remembered that night. "Well, if that was your plan. It worked."

"Speaking of work, what's your schedule like next week? I want to pick your brain about an upcoming case."

"Monday's good. I might have to testify on Tuesday. Do you want to meet over breakfast? We can go over things when you drop him off."

"Breakfast is fine." Mike touched Andrew's forehead. "How's he feeling?"

"Better, he was barely fussy today and slept through the night last night. He still has some of his antibiotic left, he needs to finish the prescription even though he's feeling better." Paige rifled through the diaper bag and frowned. "I swore I put it..." her voice trailed off as she searched the bag again, before searching her purse. "Sorry, I left it at my place. I'll drop it by yours. He doesn't have to take it until 7:30."

"It's fine, since he's feeling better, we're gonna go to the zoo and I'll stop by your house before we head home."

"You're gonna call me, right?"

"Always."

"Would you stop looking at your phone? Andrew's perfectly fine," Charlie said.

"I know, but it's his first night away from me. What if he needs me? Or what if he doesn't?" She had stopped breastfeeding a few weeks ago and Andrew was finally old enough to spend the night at Mike's without her. She didn't doubt that Mike would take excellent care of their son, she just missed him. Tonight would be the first time she wasn't the one to put him to sleep. When she woke up tomorrow morning, he wouldn't be here.

"Andrew's always going to need you." Charlie handed her another beer. "And speaking of needs, anything on the dating front?"

"Subtle," Paige said, nervously laughing as she took a drink. "I'm not really looking to date right now. RIght now, my focus is Andrew."

"It doesn't make you a bad mom if you have a little fun. I'm just saying, he's old enough to stay with Mike overnight. Or if you ever need a babysitter, I'm available."

"Thanks for the offer, but I'm good."

"So you and Mike, there's no chance?"

"I'm always going to care about Mike. Not just because he's Andrew's father, but I think we're better off as friends." Lines were blurred because they spent so much time together, but whatever romantic feelings they once had for each other had faded.

"I think you're afraid."

"Afraid of Mike?"

"Yes! But if not Mike, then let me set you up with someone."

"I'm fine."

"Come on, let me set you up with someone I know."

"The only guys you know are FBI Agents or CIs. I'm not getting involved with either."

"That's not true, there's this lawyer I met..."

Her phone buzzed and she anxiously looked at the screen, unsure if she was happy or freaked out to see Mike's name, but either way she was grateful for the interruption. "Hello?" She smiled when she saw Mike holding Andrew up so she could see him, saying a silent prayer of thanks for video chat technology. "Hi, baby."

"I just gave him a bath," Mike said, kissing the top of his head.

"A bath? Did you play in the water?"

"Duck."

"You played with ducks? I miss you."

"We're going to read a few stories, but I thought you'd want to say goodnight first."

Paige traced her fingertips on the screen, "Goodnight, Andrew. Mommy loves you. Thank you."

"Anytime, I know this must be hard for you. Thank you."

Since then, Mike always made sure to call her before he put Andrew down for the night so she could say goodnight. Paige kissed Andrew's forehead, "Mommy loves you. Be good for Daddy, okay?" She covered his face in kisses as Andrew giggled. Andrew looked up at her, immediately reaching for her earrings, tugging on her hair in the process.

"Hey, hey, hey," Mike said, gently untangling his son's tiny fist from Paige's earrings.

"Sneaky," Paige teased, lightly touching Andrew's face before kissing him a few times. "Okay, I have to get going. I have an errand to run, but I'll be home later. I have plans with Charlie but not until tonight." Paige waved, smiling as Andrew grabbed her fingers. "I love you."

"Say bye," Mike whispered.

"Bye," Andrew softly said.

It seemed like a good idea at the time. Now she wasn't so sure.

Mike was staring at her, looking like a deer caught in headlights and not like he was her deer. Mike held Andrew closer to him as he slowly looked around the room. She followed his gaze as he took in the candlelit table set for two. His eyes focused on her, and she swore she saw a flicker of desire as he slowly looked her up and down. They had been together exactly one time since they ended things.

"Are you checking up on me?" Paige accused when she noticed Mike sitting in her living room.

It was her first night out in a long time. She and Charlie had a girls' night planned. Mike got called into work, so she arranged for Johnny to watch Andrew for the evening. Johnny had shown up as planned, but his car was gone and a different FBI Agent was babysitting.

"What? No, of course not. I was checking up on Johnny. I finished early and I stopped by here. He was getting ready to put Andrew to bed, so I stayed. I told him he could leave if he wanted. I don't mind watching him."

"Sorry. It's fine."

"I hope it's okay that I'm here."

Paige smiled at Mike as she kicked off her shoes. "Of course it's okay. You're his father. You're always welcome here." She headed to Andrew's room to check on him, kissing her fingertips and lightly pressing them to his forehead. "Sweet dreams." She watched him for a few more seconds before going back into the living room, only to see Mike turning off the TV.

"I should get going."

"Wait. Can you help me with the zipper?" Paige motioned behind her, "It was stuck earlier and..." her excuse was flimsy at best, but her impulsivity got the best of her and it was the first thing that came to mind.

Mike was at her side in an instant. She held her breath as he brushed her hair over her shoulder. He fumbled with the zipper, clearly as nervous as she was.

She looked over her shoulder and he met her gaze. He was standing close enough that she could feel his breath on the back of her neck as he lowered his head slightly to unzip her dress. "You don't have to leave." Paige let her dress fall to the floor, wishing she had something sexier on underneath other than a pair of black cotton underwear. But her dress had a built in bra, so she didn't pick out something to match. She held her arm over her bare breasts, suddenly feeling self-conscious about her body. If she would've thought this through more, she would've turned off the lights first. Or offered him a drink, so she could have one to relax. This wasn't like the summer she seduced him by dropping her towel. This was her body almost a year after childbirth. Faint stretch marks on her stomach. A little extra weight despite her best efforts.

"You're so beautiful," Mike whispered, as if he was reading her mind. "You don't have to hide from me." He lightly stroked his fingers along her arm, encouraging her to drop it. Letting her arm fall, she exposed herself to him. Mike looked her up and down slowly, making her feel desired and sexier than she felt. Stepping forward, Mike slowly kissed her. "This changes things."

Of course, he wanted to talk. Why couldn't he just react like any normal man? There was a nearly naked woman standing in front of him and Mike wanted to talk first. "I don't want to talk. I want to feel. It's been too long since..." She closed her eyes as Mike started kissing her neck.

"Tell me you want this. Tell me you want me," Mike murmured against her neck, tangling his fingers in her hair, pulling her closer while his other hand wandered, exploring her body. Each touch reminding her how good they were together. "God, I missed you."

He wasn't asking about tonight and they both knew it. She had forgiven him a while ago, but they never talked about starting over. Instead they focused all their energy and attention on Andrew, ignoring their personal relationship other than friendship. "I want you tonight, can that be enough?"

"Then what?" Mike asked, lifting his head and cupping her face in his hand.

"Then we go back to how things are," Paige whispered. She could see Mike thinking. Overthinking. As the seconds ticked by, she was convinced he was going to leave, but it wasn't long before his lips came crashing down upon hers.

"Did we get our wires crossed? I just came by to pick up Andrew's medicine. I didn't know you were expecting someone. We'll be out of here in a second," Mike apologetically said, seeming very eager to leave.

He thought she had a date. Thought she lied about going out with Charlie. If she didn't salvage this quickly, tonight could be a disaster. "Just you. I was expecting you," Paige quickly said, not wanting Mike to get the wrong idea. Tonight was much different than the last time they slept together. That was spontaneous. A one-time thing. This she had been thinking about for a while and tonight she decided to act. She canceled her plans with Charlie and decided to surprise Mike. This wasn't some fairytale ending where she fell in love with Mike the moment he placed Andrew in her arms or when they heard his heartbeat for the first time. This was built over thousands of moments over the past few years. Walking over to Mike, she took Andrew from him, "Hi," Paige whispered, laughing as he touched her face. She set him down on the floor, giving him a stuffed animal. She watched him for a few seconds and reached for Mike's hand.

"Paige, we can't keep doing this."

"I think that's the problem. That we're not. That night, you said us being together would change things and it didn't, only because I didn't want them to. But I'm ready for things to change now." As hard as it was, she needed to put herself out there. Take the risk. Mike was worth it. Their family was worth it. She wasn't sure if the rumors about him dating someone was true. And if they were, she was jealous. She could admit that. But Mike needed to know she was an option. It wasn't fair of her to ambush him like this. But if she didn't do this now, she might talk herself into believing that what they had now was all she needed. "I thought we could give Andrew dinner and read to him, before putting him to bed. Then we could have dinner together and talk. Or you can just grab his medicine and leave, it's your choice."

Things were good between her and Mike. They were good friends. They trusted each other. Respected each other. They disagreed and they argued, but their fights were never volatile. They were good parents, both of them were present in their son's life. Sure, it worked now because neither of them was involved with anyone, as far as she knew. But she wanted more. She wanted to stop second guessing herself when she saw something funny and her first instinct was to text Mike. If it was something Andrew did, she never hesitated, but when it wasn't, she did and half of the time she deleted the message before hitting send. She wanted to know what it was like to be with Mike and not hide behind a closed door. She wanted to hold his hand in public. Embarrass him by singing him a sappy love song at karaoke night. Wake up next to him. Spend a lazy Sunday just lounging around the house. All the things they never got a chance to do because they were over before they began, she wanted to do them.

She wanted Mike to know that tonight wasn't just about sex. If she wanted to have sex with someone she could pick someone up. Find some guy that would never matter to her and go back to his place for a few hours. But that wasn't what tonight was about. She wanted Mike. Wanted him to know she wasn't just looking to seduce him. She was willing to have the conversation she avoided the last time they slept together. That was why she planned a romantic dinner for after they put their son to bed. Not that she cooked. But she got takeout from one of Mike's favorite restaurants. She spent way too much time figuring out what to wear. It took forever to find a dress that let Mike know she wanted to look good for him, but not desperate. She almost wore the dress she had on the night they met, but didn't want tonight to be about the past. Instead she chose a simple, pewter strapless dress. She left her hair down, because that was how he liked it. She wore no jewelry except for the necklace he gave her after Andrew was born. She decided against heels, because she would probably kick them off anyway. So why even bother with shoes? No matter what happened, she was home for the night. If she had to make a graceful exit, it would be to her bedroom, not the front door.

Mike pulled his hand away from hers and cupped her face in his hand, gently rubbing her jaw with his thumb. It felt like time was standing still while she waited for him to say something. Anything. Maybe Mike got sick of waiting for her to want more. He had been patient with her. Content to always do things on her timetable. What if she was too late? Mike was probably trying to figure out a way to let her down easy.

Mike lowered his mouth to hers, slowly kissing her. Each passing second quieted her fears about him moving on as he deepened their kiss. Mike pulled back slightly and smiled at her. "There is no choice. It's you. It's always you."

THE END

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