~10~
"Luis, your mother's a lifesaver."
Sheridan stiffened and removed herself from Luis's embrace as Hank burst through the door, shattering the illusion she wanted so much to believe in. She wiped her tears away with a discreet hand.
Luis's arms dropped to his sides, and he closed his eyes at the sensation of regret that washed over him; Hank's timing had never been the best. "Hank," Luis finally spoke. "What are you doing here?"
"Nice to see you too, old friend," Hank grinned, his brown eyes dancing playfully as he drew Luis in for a brotherly hug. He released Luis and gathered Sheridan's hands in his own, giving them a warm squeeze. "Some welcome, huh?" he winked at Sheridan before leaning forward to press a kiss to her cheek. "Hey, Beautiful."
"Hank," Sheridan answered with a genuine smile.
"You know I didn't mean it that way," Luis protested. "I'm just surprised to see you."
"Not as surprised as Sam," Hank chuckled. "You should have seen his face when I showed up on his doorstep. If I didn't know better, he'd almost forgotten what I looked like."
"It's been long enough," Luis fell quickly into their old routine. "I thought you were off traveling the world."
"You mean bumming around?" Hank kidded, encouraged by the slight smile on Luis's face. "That stuff gets old after a while," he said, casting a glance in Sheridan's direction. At her imperceptible nod, he continued, "Besides, don't go accusing me of being a sentimental sap, but the holidays are for families."
"Hank," Sheridan questioned with twinkling eyes, "where is your family?"
"In the living room with everyone else," Hank answered matter-of-factly. "It's a long story. Let's just say Jessica's no Martha Stewart, and the fire department arrived just in the nick of time."
Luis's eyebrows shot up to his hairline.
"I hope everyone's alright," Sheridan said sincerely.
"They're fine," Hank waved off her concern. "Noah's pretty handy with a fire extinguisher."
Sheridan stifled a laugh at the mental image.
"Lucky for everyone involved," Luis was unable to resist smirking.
"Lucky was Sam remembering Pilar's invitation to come along with Kay and Maria for dinner," Hank replied. "I shudder to think what was on the menu at Tabitha's house."
Sheridan was unable to resist laughing at that comment.
Luis found himself equally powerless.
Maybe Hank's timing wasn't so bad, after all.
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