Andy stood at the balcony of their room as Sharon got ready for Christmas dinner. The balcony had a view of the snowy mountains and the back yard of the house. Andy was enchanted by the way the snow sparkled on the frozen ground, along with the reflections of the Christmas lights from the house.

He saw an animal crossing the yard. It looked like a stray dog and Andy could clearly see the footprints it left in the snow. Andy wished that he could have gone on a run in the back yard at this time. Being inside this house, surrounded by Sharon's hostile family was choking him. It started with Sharon's mother who sent him some unpleasant looks over the breakfast table and later on, Gracie enlisted him to go to the grocery store with her and inquired what benefits he was getting at work from dating his boss. Of course, she wasn't direct about it, but Andy has been a detective for 30 years, and he could definitely read between the lines. When they returned, he made a beeline to the bedroom with the excuse that he needed to make an important phone call. It was not a lie. He wanted to call his children and wish them happy holidays. Sharon joined him and spoke to Nicole for a few minutes before leaving the room to allow him some privacy when he spoke to his children and grandchildren. Andy knew that she had spoken to Emily earlier that day and that she will have to wait until after midnight to call Ricky. She planned to call Rusty in the afternoon. Andy knew that she was sad not to have her children around, and he was glad that she at least got to be surrounded by her parents and sister, even if he was not a welcomed addition. He didn't realize she was with him on the balcony until he felt her arms being wrapped around his middle from behind.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked.

"How do you know I've been thinking?" he responded with a question.

"I can feel you're in a pensive mood," Sharon replied as he turned to face her.

"I just miss my family, that's all," Andy said, and they both knew he wasn't telling her the whole truth.

"Maybe next year we can fly to the East Coast and spend time with your mother and siblings," she offered. "Or we can just have a Christmas dinner in LA with your and my kids together."

"Maybe," Andy replied. Sharon brought one hand to caress his cheek.

"Maybe we can do something with your kids on New Year's Eve? It's much closer than next Christmas," she said.

"Yeah, that's a great idea," Andy smiled at her and watched as her lips curved upwards too. He now noticed that she was wearing a thick crimson dress with a soft off-white cardigan that was decorated with a sparkling mistletoe pattern. "You're beautiful," he said and wrapped his arms around her waist. "And you smell really good." She thanked him with a soft kiss.

"Can you come inside for a minute?" she asked when their lips parted.

"Sure, is everything okay?" Sharon nodded and took his hand, leading him back inside and closing the balcony doors behind them.

"Oh my God, it was freezing out there!" she sighed in relief and dragged him closer to the electric fireplace. Andy shrugged but smiled at her. Standing on the balcony with him in the cold must have been a torture for her. "So… um… We still have a few minutes before we have to go downstairs for dinner and I wanted to give you something. I know we're not supposed to open our gifts until tomorrow morning, but I thought this should be an exception." Taking his hand, she handed him a wooden box, similar in size to the one he gave her for Christmas the previous year. Andy removed the lid and smiled as he saw the little shiny object that was resting on top of colorful shredded paper in the box. "It's the key to my condo," Sharon said. "You can come whenever you want."

"Wow, Sharon," Andy looked at her in awe for a long moment. "Thank you so much. It means a lot to me," he wrapped one arm around her waist and pulled her into a tight embrace. Sharon already had a key to his house and she even used it a couple of times since he's given it to her. She smiled sweetly and covered his lips with hers for a short kiss.

"We better go downstairs and see if everyone is ready," Sharon said and took his hand. They left the room and went downstairs together. The dining table was set and beautifully decorated. Everyone were already there, and as Sharon and Andy came in, the O'Dwyers took their seats at the table. It was a table for eight, but since it was just the six of them, they had two empty seats. The fact that there weren't many of them didn't prevent the O'Dwyer family from having enough food to the table to feed an entire LAPD division. Andy noticed that aside from the turkey and other meat dishes, there were at least four vegetarian dishes that Sharon must have come up with for him.

"Before we eat, I just want to say that it's been a long time since I saw both of my daughters around the holiday dinner table and I am very glad both of you made it this year. Hopefully, next year all my grandchildren will be here too," Sharon's father said.

"Amen," her mother responded and smiled warmly at both her daughters. Darren cut the turkey and they all filled their plates and started eating. The first few minutes were rather quiet as six hungry mouths chewed the food on their plates. It was only after they got enough food in their stomachs that several conversations started around the table. Andy listened to Sharon and Gracie talking about their kids. If he understood correctly, Gracie had three married children, two of which lives on the East Coast.

"Andy, would you like some wine?" Darren's voice drew him out of the conversation.

"No, thank you. I don't drink," Andy replied.

"Oh, come on, Andy. It's a holiday!" Gracie said. Andy threw a gaze at Sharon, not sure how much about his background she wanted her family to know at this stage.

"Andy is in AA, Gracie," she said nonchalantly. Andy could feel all the eyes in the room settling on him before Darren went on to offer the others wine. Sharon's hand caught his under the table and her fingers laced with his. She offered him a soft smile as she declined Darren's offer for wine.

When everyone around the dinner table were full and the conversation started dying down, Sharon's mother declared it was time to clear the table. Sharon and Gracie got up and started picking up the dishes. Andy joined them, hoping that being helpful would earn him a few points with Sharon's family, although he doubted that they would find any of his qualities redeeming. He followed the two O'Dwyer sisters to the kitchen, each of them carrying a pile of plates, while Darren and Sharon's father went out to smoke on the front porch.

Sharon and Gracie remained in the kitchen with their mother and started doing the dishes and boxing up the remains of the dinner while Andy left to bring the rest of the dishes from the table. As soon as he went out of the kitchen, Sharon was faced with her flushed mother and sister who glared at her.

"Do you have masochistic tendencies?" Gracie asked, her eyes full of fire.

"Excuse me?" Sharon looked at her sister with confusion.

"Another alcoholic, Sharon?" her mother glared at her.

"Andy has been sober for two decades, mom. He's doing very well, he's sponsoring other addicts and he attends AA regularly," Sharon replied.

"Don't be naïve, Sharon. What is it with you, always chasing the bad boys?" Gracie asked. "You'd think at your age, you'd be over this childish propensity."

"You two don't even know Andy. You have no idea how sweet and caring he is. He has such a warm personality, but from the minute he walked in here, you've been giving him hell," Sharon felt tears welling her eyes. How could her family not see how in love she was with Andy and how happy his presence made her?

"Sharon, you married Jackson 30 years ago. You made a bad choice and while I don't approve of your decision to divorce him, despite all his shortcomings, I'm willing to let it go. But now you come here with a guest you never told us you'd be bringing with you. You let him sleep in your bed; you are intimate with him; and then you tell us that he's a drinker, just like the husband you decided to divorce. This is unacceptable. You can't just drop a bomb and expect it not to blow up," her mother spoke in a low tone that Sharon always found intimidating.

"Andy and I are serious about each other, and we love each other. We enjoy each other's company; and yes – we enjoy sex too, Mom. I have been on my own for so long and Andy has been a close friend of mine since I transferred to his unit. We've known each other for twenty years. He's a good and honest person and he deserves a chance from you," Sharon said.

"Sharon, when will you grow up and understand that not everyone deserves the chances you're willing to give?" Gracie asked, and her expression made Sharon's stomach burn with rage. She looked at her sister and mother.

"I can't believe you two. Mom, you always taught me to be compassionate, forgiving and accepting. And Grace, you always say to me that it's important to recognize the way that some people have to go to change their lives. Through my childhood and my adulthood I admired and looked up to the two of you, because I saw all those qualities in you. But now, I simply don't recognize the two of you. I am so disappointed," Sharon said and left the kitchen.

The words that were said to her by her mother and sister burned her and she felt as if her skin was covered with blisters. She planned to go outside of the house for a few minutes to cool off, but then she saw Andy, standing a few steps outside the kitchen, holding dishes in his hands. It was clear to her by the way he looked at her that he overheard the conversation that took place in the kitchen and she could see the hurt in his eyes. Taking the dishes from him, and placing them back on the dining table, she took his hand, nearly dragging him upstairs and into the bedroom. Once they closed the door behind them, she wrapped her arms around him and buried her head under his chin.

"Are you okay, Sharon?" he asked as he stroked her hair.

"Whatever you heard, ignore it. Even if they end up hating you, it doesn't change how I feel about you and this is what's important, right?" Andy uttered a faint 'yes' and kissed the crown of her head. "I'm sorry this Christmas is not what you've hoped for," Sharon pulled away from him and looked into his eyes.

"I should say that to you," Andy smiled softly and Sharon caressed his face with the tips of her fingers. Christmas was never really his favorite holiday, and getting the chance to spend it by Sharon's side was great. Putting up with her family was not as bad for him as she thought it was; he was used to this kind of treatment every time he went to one of his family events. It was Sharon who had a hard time with it and he knew the best way to comfort her was to stay by her side, to prove to her and to her family that he would not run away like Jack must have done countless times. This was the only way to prove to her family that he was serious about her, and that he truly cared about her. "Are you feeling a bit better?" he asked. She nodded softly. "Let's go back downstairs." Andy took her hand and they left the bedroom.

The evening was exhausting for the both of them. After Darren and Sharon's father came back inside, the family sat in the living room and the women served dessert and eggnog. Sharon and Andy sat close to the fireplace, as far as they could from the rest of the family. Andy's arm was around Sharon's shoulders and he gently twirled the ends of her hair around his fingers as he discussed baseball with Darren. He could tell that Sharon was distracted and Andy knew that she was still upset about the conversation with her mother and sister. After a while, she excused herself and went upstairs to sleep. Andy offered to come with her, but she just shook her head at him and he got the message; she wanted to be alone. He stayed in the living room, and kept up the conversation with Darren, whom he found to be a very interesting person and Sharon's father who was mostly quiet and contemplative and listened to the conversation, commenting only when he had something to say. Gracie and Sharon's mother gathered the dessert dishes and went to the kitchen to wash them before they said goodnight and went upstairs. Sharon's father followed them a short time later and Andy found himself with Darren.

"So, you and Sharon," the other man cut to the chase as soon as the two of them were alone. "Is it serious?"

"It is," Andy replied.

"Look, I'm gonna be honest. Sharon has been through a lot of crap with her ex-husband. He's an alcoholic too," Darren started.

"I know him," Andy replied. He figured if he kept his answers short, this conversation wouldn't last long.

"Sharon married too young. She just turned 21. Jack was a really good looking guy, funny, smart, charming, fun to be around. It's easy to understand why he swept her off her feet. Her family loved him as much as they loved her, but I never liked him much. Shortly before their wedding, I even told her that she can do better, but she looked at me, and her eyes shone and I could tell that she was crazy about him. I assume you know the rest of the story," Darren said. Andy hummed. "You seem like a nice person, but you have a history, which sounds too similar to Jack's. It worries me. It worries everyone around here."

"I understand," Andy said. "I've been married before, as I told you earlier, and I don't think I ever loved my wife as much as I love Sharon. I know it's a cliché, but it's true. It's been a very long time since I felt this way towards anyone. Maybe it's because we've been good friends for a long time. I feel really deeply for her."

"And I can tell, just by looking at her that she feels very deeply for you," Darren said. "All I'm saying is – Sharon has dealt with Jack's addiction for nearly 3 decades. Please don't let her deal with yours as well, whether you fall off the wagon or stay on it."

"I'll do my best, Darren," Andy promised. Darren offered him his hand and Andy shook it. "Now, if you don't mind, I'll go to check on her. She was a little under the weather earlier."

"Sure, of course. Good night, Andy," Darren said and smiled. Andy smiled back and decided that he really liked Darren. His concern for Sharon seemed genuine, but he was still trying to be friendly and welcoming. It was good to have at least one ally in Sharon's family, Andy thought as he went upstairs and walked towards the bedroom. He was not surprised to find Sharon talking with Ricky on Skype, with a beautiful smile lighting up her face. Ricky was telling her about the traditional Christmas markets in Germany and inquired if she received the gifts he sent her. As soon as Sharon saw him, she motioned for Andy to join her, and he took a seat by her side and waved at Ricky. The kid looked happy to see him. They chatted a little before Ricky had to go and wished them both merry Christmas.

"So, I see that you and Darren get along well," Sharon said after she shut her computer.

"Yeah, he seems like a nice guy," Andy responded and started taking off his clothes.

"He is sweet. He's helped me so much with the kids when they were younger," Sharon said. "And anytime I wasn't sure what to do, he gave me a good advice."

"Yes, he strikes me as a wise person," Andy said and walked over to her. "Are you ready to go to bed?" He asked. Sharon nodded slowly and close the distance between them, shedding her crimson dress as she walked. She slipped into her PJ's and crawled into bed. Andy followed her and wrapped his arm around her waist. They exchanged quiet goodnights, not feeling the need to fill the space between them with any words. They both liked that about each other; when there was nothing left to say, they were comfortable just being together in silence.

Sharon laid in the dark for a long time after she heard Andy's breaths evening out and becoming shallow. She waited for sleep to come and take over her for the night, but it failed to arrive. She had too many thoughts running through her head, chasing her sleep away. Her conversation with her mother and Gracie was weighing on her. She never imagined that her family would oppose her divorce so strongly and she never thought that they would be against her dating someone new. Her mother and sister's open doubt of her judgement deeply hurt her feelings. Couldn't they see how happy she was with Andy? Couldn't they see that he really loved her and that her feelings for him were real?

Carefully slipping out of Andy's arms, she went out of bed. She put on her coat, grabbed her UGGS and left the room. Quietly, she walked down the hall, descended the stairs and walked to the front door, only stopping to put her UGGS on before she opened it and walked out to the front porch. The cold of the night hit her like a thousands of needles piercing her skin all at once and she shivered.

"You'll catch a cold," a voice behind her startled her. She turned to face her father who was standing in the doorway behind her. "Can't sleep?" She nodded quickly and her father joined her on the porch. "What's keeping you up?"

"It's nothing. Just some thoughts," Sharon sighed. Her father lit a cigarette and took a long drag. He offered it to her. "I don't smoke, Dad."

"You never liked the smell," her father said. "Not even when you were a baby. You used to cry if I smelled of smoke." He smiled to himself as he put the cigarette out on a pile of snow that gathered on the wooden banister. "So what's on your mind, Sweetie?" he asked and wrapped his arm around his daughter's shoulders.

"It's Mom and Gracie, they said some things to me earlier that offended me," Sharon replied.

"What did they say?" her father asked.

"They said I have poor judgement, that I'm naïve, masochistic, and childish," Sharon replied. "And Mom hates it that I divorced Jack."

"The bastard had it coming," her father said. "I entrusted my precious treasure in his hands and he treated her like crap. Hearing that you divorced him was the best news I got this year."

"It's not only that, Dad. They judged Andy, just because he's an alcoholic, even though he's been sober for twenty years." Thin mist left her mouth as she spoke.

"They don't really like Andy, I know," her father responded. "But sweetie, what your mother and sister think about your boyfriend shouldn't matter to you. If you're happy with him, if he's good to you, if he makes you smile, then you should follow your heart. It's not masochistic to love someone else. It's masochistic not to." Sharon felt a fountain of tears escaping her eyes. She didn't even realize that she had tears in her eyes until that moment. They flowed warmly on her cheeks and her father pulled her into his arms and stroked her hair.

"Thanks, Dad," she whispered.

"Now, do you wanna freeze to death out here while we wait for Santa's sleigh to land in the yard or should we go inside and I'll make you some hot chocolate?" Her father grinned as she pulled away.

"Can we steal Santa's cookies?" Sharon's eyes lit up. When she was still young enough to believe in Santa, she used to stay up and try to catch him. Her father used to dress up in a Santa costume and walk through the house. He would always catch her hiding and watching him as he placed the gifts under the tree and then lured her out of her hiding and they would eat gingerbread cookies together before 'Santa' sent her off to bed. She found out the truth when she was 10, but their Christmas tradition still remained many years later.

"Sure, we can, cookie thief," her father replied and they went back into the house to have a night snack.

The smell of cinnamon and ginger filled the entire house and invaded the bedrooms on the second floor, waking up the family and making their stomachs grumble. Three pairs of feet padded down the stairs, clad in thick socks and slippers. One pair of feet went upstairs, and entered the bedroom in which Andy had just woken up. Sharon took a seat at the end of the bed and leaned to kiss him.

"Merry Christmas, honey," she said. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her to him.

"I dreamt that Santa was here tonight but I told him I already have the most wonderful gift I could have asked for," he spoke softly and his eyes shone. His words made Sharon smile widely and she captured his lips again. "Where were you all night?" he asked, his tone curious.

"I spent some quality time with my dad," Sharon replied and Andy could detect a hint of sadness in her eyes. He knew how much she missed her parents and sister, how hard it was for her that they all lived so far away from her.

"So, what's Christmas morning tradition around here?" he changed the subject. Christmas was her favorite holiday and he hated seeing her sad.

"Well, if you can get out of bed really fast, we can open the presents now and then go downstairs for breakfast. My dad and I baked a cake, and it goes really well with coffee," Sharon said and pushed his comforter aside. They walked towards the tree in the corner of the room and Sharon smiled at him. "You go first," she said and handed him a small box wrapped in red and golden paper with a golden bow. Andy carefully opened it and pulled out a dark wooden box. He opened it carefully, not sure what to expect to find inside.

"Sharon, seriously?" he asked and wrapped his arms around her. She bought him a new watch and one that looked pretty luxurious too. "You really didn't have to do that."

"You felt really bad after you broke the old one," Sharon shrugged. She was right; Andy's old watch was crushed after an altercation with a suspect. He walked around pissed off for a week after that.

"Thank you, Sharon. It's beautiful," he said and planted a soft kiss on her lips. "Now open yours." There were three gifts for Sharon under the tree. One from Andy, one from her parents and one from Gracie and Darren. "This one is mine," Andy said and handed her a big box wrapped in shimmery blue paper with a sparkling white snowflakes pattern. Sharon quickly unwrapped it, and put the wrapping paper aside. She looked at the decorated box in her hands and then opened it to reveal a tea kit that included an assortment of wellness and artisan teas, a tea press, and a gift card for purchasing tea in the brand's store.

"Thank you, Andy. I love it!" she called out and took his hand. She quickly opened the gifts from her parents and sister, and then grabbed another gift and handed it to Andy. "This one is for the both of us. I think Santa left it for us." She watched him as he opened it, revealing deep purple lace lingerie.

"Santa has been naughty this year," Andy smirked and Sharon nodded with a wide smile. They heard a knock on the door.

"We'll be right down!" Sharon called out and looked at Andy. She placed the lingerie back in the box and put it under the tree again "Come on, let's go get some breakfast."

The entire family was already seated at the big dining room table and was munching on the cake Sharon and her father baked when Sharon and Andy came down the stairs. They said good morning to everyone as they took their seats next to each other. Everyone ate in silence, and there was barely any conversation going on around the table. It appeared that the strains from the previous evening still prevailed.

At the end of breakfast, Sharon and Andy were about to go upstairs when Gracie and Sharon's mother asked her if they could talk to her. She followed them to the kitchen, not sure what to expect from them.

"Sharon, we spoke about it and we can tell that the things we said to you last night hurt your feelings," Gracie started. "And we just wanted to apologize."

"The things we said were out of love. As your mother," her mother motioned between Sharon and Gracie, "I care and worry about you, even if the two of you are grown. And I can see that the set of beliefs I grew up with may not work for you." She looked at Sharon and sighed. "You committed to Jack, and I know he's broken his vows more than once, and I thought you will still keep yours. You've done it for thirty years and I guess you've had your fill of his behavior. It's a brave thing to do, starting a journey on your own, and if Andy makes you happy, then I am glad that you won't be completely alone on your way." Sharon could tell it was hard for her mother to say those words.

"I appreciate it, Mom, Gracie. I really do," Sharon's voice shook.

"We just have one request to make," Gracie said. "If Andy ever relapses, if he mistreats you, if you are no longer happy with him, don't wait thirty years. Don't wait even a minute. Leave him right away." Sharon nodded in agreement. She hoped that she will never have to be in a position where any of these things happen to her. Gracie wrapped her arms around her and their mother wrapped hers around the both of them. The three of them whispered tearful 'I love you' to each other before they pulled apart.

Andy was standing on the balcony again, looking into the endless dark blanket that was speckled with stars and governed by the white moon; it was bigger than usual and cast a soft light on the snowy ground. There was something about this place that captured his heart. He's never seen snow so pure, nights to quiet, and even though it was cold, he found the place magical, a true winter wonderland.

His day was quieter than the one before. After the awkward breakfast, Andy went upstairs to call Nicole and speak to his grandkids, while Sharon went to the kitchen with her mother and sister. When Andy went back downstairs, Darren and Sharon's father offered him to go with them for a walk and he agreed and joined them. The two of them were quite friendly and asked a lot of questions about his family. They spoke about a fishing trip in the spring and wondered if Andy would join them. He promised to join them if his work permitted it. Darren jokingly mentioned that since he was dating his boss, he may get a special permission; Andy laughed and said that he would never use their relationship to affect his work status. Darren and Sharon's father smiled knowingly, as if they shared a private joke. It still seemed like they were testing him, but in a friendly manner. He guessed that after what she's been through with Jack, it was only natural that Sharon's family would be very protective of her, even if she didn't need them to be.

"Hey there," he heard Sharon's voice behind him as she stepped onto the balcony, placing one of her hands on his, and the other on the frozen railing. "You seem so solemn every time you come out here," she said, only half-joking. He turned to her and placed his hands on her either side of her waist, looking deep into her eyes.

"I'm just in awe of all the beauty that I see in front of me," he said and the ends of his lips curved upwards only slightly. Sharon's hands moved to cup his cheeks, and Andy noticed that one of them was warmer than the other.

"My mom and Gracie looked for you today, and couldn't find you," Sharon said. "They wanted to apologize for the way they treated you yesterday."

"It's okay, Sharon. I understand why they acted the way they did. No apology needed," he said and saw a confused expression appearing on Sharon's face. "You remember that time DDA Rios tried to remove Rusty from your custody and you became very defensive of him?" Sharon hummed softly. "Now that I've seen the way your mother and sister tried to protect you from the big bad wolf, I realized that you learned it from them. They don't want you to get hurt," Andy said. He could see realization sparking in her eyes, and it was almost like watching a lightbulb going on above her head.

"I'm just like my mother," she gasped and her lips formed a silent 'Oh my God'. Andy laughed and turned his face to kiss her palm that was still resting on his cheek.

"You're perfect, that's what you are," he said.

"I'm not perf – "

"You are perfect for me, Sharon," Andy said. She mouthed an inaudible 'thank you' and drew him down to her lips for a long kiss. When they pulled apart, Andy noticed snowflakes falling from the sky, catching in her hair.

"Baby, it's cold outside," she sang softly, her voice low and sultry. Taking a step away from him, she undid the knot in the belt of her warm robe and pulled it open just enough for him to see the lingerie she showed him earlier that day. Andy saw the goosebumps that formed on her creamy skin and the way her nipples pushed against the lace of the purple bra as she shivered in front of him. "Come inside. You have one more gift to unwrap," she said, the gaze in her eyes leaving no room for interpretation before she turned and slowly paced back into their room through the French doors, putting a twist in her hips as she hummed a sweet Christmas tune. Andy looked at her for only a second before he followed her inside. It really was cold outside and he had quite a few ideas how to get warm.

THE END

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