It didn't seem quite possible, but life had seemed to fall into a new normal for them, Andrea fitting into their family routine easily. Sharon found herself grateful for another feminine energy in the condo, as it helped balance things. And so, it seemed so easy to let their guards down, since there had been no further attempts to harm any of them.
The morning of the second Saturday Andrea had lived with them dawned bright, but cold, and Sharon found herself wanting to head out to the park and take a leisurely walk there. Sitting up, she stretched a little before leaning down and pressing her lips against Andy's cheek, hoping the touches would wake him up. He blinked his eyes and gave her a lazy smile as he reached up and stroked her cheek before pushing her hair behind her ear. "What time is it?"
"A little after eight," she replied as she slipped out of the bed and padded over to the dresser, rummaging through it to find the appropriate clothes. "I'm going to get dressed and then see if Andrea and Rusty want to join us."
"Where are we going this early on a Saturday?" he asked, trying to sound grumpy, but failing.
"The park. I know that it will be cool out, but I have this itching desire to take a long walk. Things feel safe at the moment, even if I'm not ready to call off the security detail on Rusty yet. You never know when things might change."
He nodded and flopped back on the mattress once more. "How about we compromise? I'll stay here and cook us a nice brunch, while you, Andrea, and the kid head out for that walk?"
"If you're offering to cook, I will definitely take you up on that offer," she replied as she pulled the last thing she'd need for that morning. Heading into the master bathroom, she made certain to catch Andy's eye before winking at him and tugging off her nightie, throwing it at him with reckless abandon before closing herself inside the bathroom.
It didn't take long for her to change, and then Sharon went to Rusty's room, knocking on the door firmly. "Come in!"
She pushed the door open and rested her hip against the jamb, smiling to see that her son was already up, though still dressed in his pyjamas. "What do you say to joining me and Andrea in the park this morning? I want to take a relaxing walk while the sun is out, and Andy's offered to make us all brunch while we're out."
"And you don't want to be alone, just in case Stroh rears his ugly head?"
"Something like that." She grinned at him, hoping that she was encouraging him to come along. "You don't even need to really clean up more than that, if you didn't want to."
"Quit twisting my arm, Mom. Of course, I'll come. Go wake Andrea while I change."
She laughed as she nodded. That had been the one hard thing to get used to. As soon as Andrea had felt comfortable in the guest room, she had apparently also fallen into the bad habits she was accustomed to at home, which included sleeping in until the last possible moment. Sharon wondered how she managed to look so put together at work when everything was so frenetic in the morning. Turning on her heel, she went over to the guest room and slipped inside without bothering to knock. It was a risk, to invade Andrea's privacy in that way, but somehow she knew that the woman wouldn't mind.
The shade on the window was drawn, and Sharon went over and opened it, letting light stream inside and touch Andrea's still sleeping form. Her blonde hair haloed her head and Sharon smiled as she crossed over to the bed and sank down on the edge, reaching out to brush her fingers along Andrea's shoulder. The other woman let out a deep groan as she frowned and turned on her side, curling up into a tight ball.
"Andrea, wake up," Sharon sang out, tugging gently on a hank of her friend's hair. "It's a gorgeous day outside!"
"Good for you. It is a gorgeous day in my bed, and I don't want to wake up from the happy dreams I was having."
"Not even to go walking with me? There's the promise of brunch afterwards!"
Andrea let out a rough breath as she stretched out and then sat up, hugging her knees as she glared at Sharon. "Do you really want to make me exercise on my day off?"
"Yes!" Sharon leaned in as close as she possibly dared to Andrea, thumbing her nose softly as she tilted her head a little, a warm smile on her lips. "Please, humor me?"
"I suppose," she sighed out as she pulled away from Sharon and slipped out of bed. "And there's not time to shower, is there?"
"Nope."
Andrea rolled her eyes a little as she padded over to the dresser and began to rummage through. "Give me ten minutes to change and make myself look halfway decent. If you want, you could fill a bottle of water for me?"
"I can totally do that!" Sharon sang out as she turned and left the bedroom. Rusty was in the kitchen, sipping a mug of coffee, and she gave him a soft smile before going over to the cupboard next to him and rummaging through the cups there until she touched the small Nalgene bottle towards the back. "Andrea just needs to get dressed, and then we'll be ready to go," she said as she filled the bottle with ice and water from the fridge.
"So we'll leave in an hour?"
"Hey! I can get ready quickly when I want to," Andrea replied, giving Rusty a small glare. "I am more than ready to go if you are."
"Please, after you," he replied smartly as he indicated towards the door. Sharon let out a long breath as she shook her head, closing the bottle and taking a good look at Andrea. Her hair was up in a ponytail, and Sharon realized that this was only the second time she had seen it pulled back, as that wasn't Andrea's usual style.
"Now children, I don't want to have to separate you, am I clear?"
Andrea laughed as she nodded. "I'll be good, Mother," she teased as they trouped down to the elevators. Rusty busied himself on his phone while they rode down, and Sharon couldn't seem to find any decent small talk that would fill their time, though she did keep glancing at Andrea, noticing that she was giving her glances, too. "Are we just going to walk to the park? I mean, it's only a block!"
"I think I can handle that."
They nodded in tandem as Rusty opened the door to the building for them, giving his protection detail a small wave as they passed by them. Sharon heard the door to the car open as they walked on, and felt herself relax a little, knowing that they would be protected from anything bad that could happen.
Rusty made certain to keep about a hundred feet ahead of them as they walked, and Sharon was grateful for the privacy that lent. "So, how are you finding it? Being with us, I mean. I know that you prefer privacy, but I am so glad that you're with us, even beyond the need to protect you."
"It is a bit difficult, yes, getting used to navigating around three people, but there's a sort of comfort that comes with it as well. I didn't think that I would get used to it so quickly, but I think that your being here has helped smooth the transition. I'm not chafing nearly as much as I thought I would be…"
Andrea's voice trailed off as she focused her attention on Rusty, and Sharon followed her gaze, seeing the early morning sun glint off something distinctly metallic. It took a second to register what was happening, but before Sharon could react, Andrea was breaking out into a run, quickly catching up to Rusty and pushing him out of the way, even as the loud bang of a gunshot broke the stillness of morning.
