When Detectives Reagan and Baez arrived at the small duplex apartment rented by Marius Valjean, they studied the area before stepping out of their vehicle. Everything appeared quiet.

"Not a bad neighborhood," Danny stated.

'Nope," Baez replied.

"So, what chance do you think our Mr. Les Miz is home?"

"Very little."

"That's what I'm thinking, too."

As they walked up the cracked sidewalk, Baez said, "I'm impressed with your knowledge of Broadway."

Danny shrugged his shoulders. "I've seen a play or two."

"Yeah, Linda drug you to them, I bet. Can't see you going on your own."

"Whichever, I went."

Standing at the door of the duplex, Danny put his ear to it. "Sounds like the television is on. Is it really going to be this easy?"

"Reagan, you know they never make it easy."

"You got that right." Danny knocked on the door. They both heard movement inside. They waited. When no one answered, Danny turned to Baez. "Think he's gonna run?"

"Don't they always?"

Frowning, Danny motioned for her to go around the back, then changed his mind.

"Never mind, you can't run in that skirt."

"Just don't you worry about that. This guy's mine."

"Fine, go."

As Baez headed around to the back of the duplex, Danny knocked on the door again.

"Mr. Valjean, NYPD. Open up." Once again he heard movement. Knocking again, he said, "Open up!"

Baez arrived at the back of the duplex just in time to see a man run out the backdoor and head down the alley.

"Damn!" She quickly removed her two inch heels, hiked up her short skirt, and took off in pursuit of him. "Danny, he's on the run!"

Danny called for backup as he jumped into his car and headed in the direction of his partner's voice, turning right onto the first street he came to. He arrived in the alley just in time to block the runner.

"Going somewhere?" he asked as he jumped out of the car, reached for his weapon.

Danny had slowed the man enough for Baez to catch up to him. She grabbed him, took him down.

"Remember me?" she said as she pulled his arms around his back and slapped handcuffs on him.

Still on the ground, he replied, "I've never seen you before in my life!"

"Right," Danny said as he jerked the man to his feet. "This your date two weeks ago, partner?"

"It is. Shall I read him his rights, or do you want the pleasure?"

"Be my guest. Where's your shoes?"

"I left them behind," she replied.

A squad car arrived as she was reading Marius Valjean his rights.

"Need help, Detectives?" one of the officers asked as he stepped out of the patrol car.

"Yeah, get this asshole out of my sight."

"Will do."

As the officers put Valjean into the backseat of their car, Baez started walking down the alley.

"Where are you going, partner?" Danny asked.

"Back to get my heels. I paid a fortune for those things."

"Get in the car. I'll drive you."

Looking at her hand, she said, "Damn!"

"What's wrong? You hurt?"

"I broke a nail."

"Oh," Danny replied, rolling his eyes.

"Hey, I just got them done two days ago."

On the way back to the precinct, Baez fussed with her broken nail.

"What's up with the red polish?" Danny asked.

"It matches my lipstick. What's wrong with red, anyway? It's what Nicole always wears."

"Is that what all this is about partner? The red nails, the short tight skirts, the high heels. Are you trying to be Nicole?"

"No!" Baez protested.

"You sure about that? I mean, I know it's to impress the new lieutenant. You know he has the hots for Nicole."

"Think so?"

"Come on. Don't tell me you haven't noticed the way he looks at her."

"Yeah, I've noticed. He doesn't stand a chance with her, though."

"You don't think so?"

"Are you serious, Danny? You really think Nicole is going to cheat on your dad?"

"It's possible, isn't it?"

"No way. She's too crazy about him."

"I hope you're right."

"Trust me."

Danny did hope that she was right. He was starting to regret the phone call he had made to his dad, right before they left the station. Maybe what he saw between Nicole and Lt. Dean in the break room was nothing, as Nicole had said. If she had just accepted his offer to take her home, he would have felt much better about it.

XXXXX

Back at the precinct Danny and Baez sat at their desk. Baez was busy filling out the report from their arrest.

"Good job, Detectives. Do we need to get Nicole back in to make a positive identification?"

"I think Nicole's done enough for one day. Let's leave her alone. We have enough on Valjean to keep him. I think he can sit a day or so. We'll get Nicole in Monday morning, see if she picks him out of a lineup," Danny replied.

"Sounds good," Lt. Dean said. "I think we've all put in a full day. Finish up your report, and go home."

"Works for me," Danny replied.

"Anyone available for dinner tonight? I'm not looking forward to a Saturday night in my little apartment dining on another TV dinner. I could use a night out, a decent meal. And I hate dining in a restaurant alone."

"Sorry, Lieutenant, I'd love to help you out, but I got a wife and kids waiting for me at home."

"I'm free," Detective Baez said.

"Good. You name a place, I'll meet you there."

"Sure. How about Mario's, seven-thirty? I need to go home and freshen up."

"See you there," Lt. Dean said, and then he left.

Frowning, Danny said, "Not sure that's a good idea, partner."

"What, Danny? It's just dinner," she replied.

"Yeah, right. Just dinner."

"Yes, just dinner."

"Well, see that it stays just dinner."

"I will. For now," she replied, smiling.

Danny continued to frown, shaking his head. He didn't like his partner getting involved with the Lieutenant, worried about her getting hurt, but he knew nothing he said was going to change her mind. Besides, maybe it was time he minded his own business, stayed out of other people's romances, focused on his own.

Finally he said, "Fine. Get out of here. Go freshen up. I'll finish the report."

"Aww. Reagan. Thanks. I owe you."

"Yep, you always do."

After Baez left, Danny moved over to her chair to finish the report she was working on. He thought about his dad and Nicole, and his partner and Lt. Dean, thankful he had a beautiful wife at home. He would not want to be a part of the dating scene, it was just too complicated. He preferred the simple life with Linda and his boys. Perhaps he would stop on his way home and get her flowers, let her know how much he appreciated her always being there for him. Or maybe a bottle of wine. What the hell. He'd splurge this time and get both.

XXXXX

Sitting at a quiet table in Mario's, Lt. Dean and Detective Baez chatted while they sipped on the wine they had ordered.

"So, what do you think about Nicole and the Commissioner being together?" Baez asked.

The lieutenant shrugged his shoulders. "They seem happy. Seems like a bit of an age difference, but I guess the Commissioner would seem like a good catch for a lot of women."

"Doesn't bother you to see them together?"

Lt. Dean reached for his glass of wine, took a sip, then set the glass back down. "Why would it?"

"I've seen the way you look at her. I just thought it might."

"Boy, you New York women don't beat around the bush, do you?"

"I just call it like I see it."

"That makes at least two of you. Didn't realize it was so obvious."

"It's pretty obvious. Not sure it is to the Commissioner, or Nicole—"

"Hopefully not to the Commissioner, but it was to Nicole. She called me on it this afternoon in the break room, let me know I didn't have a chance."

"I'm sorry."

"No big deal. I never thought I did."

They were both silent for a several minutes, sipping on their wine and nibbling on the bread.

Finally, the Lieutenant reached into his pocket, pulled out his small wallet. "I want to show you something." He pulled out the small photo of Jessica, handed it to Baez.

She took it from him, studied it. Confused, she asked, "Is this Nicole? You have a picture of Nicole in your wallet?"

"No, it's not Nicole. Looks like her, though, doesn't it."

"Yeah! Younger, but yes. The resemblance is uncanny." Handing the photo back to him, she asked, "Who is she?"

"Someone from my past."

"Well, obviously someone important. Your ex-wife?"

'No."

"You are divorced, though. Right?"

"Yes, but years ago. I met my ex-wife in high school. We dated all our Senior year. After graduation, I did my two years in the Army while she went off to college. When I came back we got married. I got on with the Santa Fe police department, she continued to attend the local university. She didn't like being married to a cop, the long hours, late shifts, low pay. When she received her degree, and could take care of herself, she split.

"It happens all the time. The job's hard for a spouse to handle."

"Yeah, well, Danny's wife seems to have made the adjustment over the years."

"Several do, but some don't. I'm sorry yours didn't work out. So, whose the Nicole look-alike?"

"Her name is Jessica Wheeler. Or was. Now it's Jessica Nylan. We met one day in court. She was the defense attorney for a guy I had arrested. It was love at first sight, for both of us. We moved in together a month later. Stayed together for ten years. I assumed we would be together forever, though we never married. She worked as a public defender, still does. We were both pretty committed to our work, but each other as well."

"So, you arrested the bad guys, and she got them off."

"Pretty much," he said, smiling. "She was good at it."

"That must have made for an interesting relationship."

"Well, we always managed to leave it at the office, so to speak."

"So, what happened between you?"

He laughed. "I'm still trying to figure that out. I thought everything was perfect between us. I got promoted to Detective five years after we met. You know the pressures of the job, the odd hours, undercover work. I guess I got more and more involved in the job, didn't notice her restlessness, unhappiness. About the time I made Sergeant, she told me she thought it was time we both moved on. I was shocked. Had no idea. Of course, when I looked back, I could see the signs had been there. I just hadn't noticed them. Or probably just ignored them. I asked her if there was someone else. She said yes. I'll never forget what she said when I asked her if she had been with him. Her reply was 'No. But I want to be.'

"That was all I needed to hear. We ended it, and I put in for a transfer to Phoenix. Turns out the guy was a widower with two young children. She'd always said she didn't want children, didn't have time for them. We had agreed that neither of us wanted a family, that our careers just didn't allow for one, that we wouldn't be able to devote the time to them they would deserve. When I questioned her about his children, why she would want to marry a man with two of them, she said, 'Turns out I do want children. I just didn't know it until I spent time with his.' So, anyway she's happily married, and has the children she never knew she wanted."

"And you still carry her photo in your wallet."

"Yes. I guess I just haven't been able to let go, even after five years. We parted as friends, we still keep in touch, she's always there for me if I need her, someone to talk to. Haven't seen her since I left Phoenix, but we talk regularly. That first day here, when I went to meet the Commissioner, I was running late. I barreled out of the elevator, ran right over Nicole, who I assume had just left his office. When I saw her, I was shocked. It was like Jess was standing there. I guess I saw Nicole as a chance to continue what I had with Jessica, kind of got wrapped up in it. Kind of sick, huh? Their personalities are totally different, but the more I was around Nicole, which wasn't really that much, the more I was attracted to her. So, there you have it."

"Well, Nicole's very beautiful. The attraction is understandable."

"But time to move on, from Jessica and Nicole, right?"

"Yeah, seems like that would be best," Baez said, smiling.

Looking across the table deep into her big brown eyes, Lt. Dean replied, "I think so, too." He picked up the photo, studied it for a second, then said, "Time to get rid of this?"

"I would think so."

"Me, too," he said. Then he crumbled the photo in his hand, tossed it onto the table.

"So, tell me about you, Maria. Any ex's in your life?"