"I feel like a huge cocktail." Sofia dropped on her couch.

"You had four."

"Yes and I enjoyed every one."

"That's good." Sara sat down.

"Do I look pregnant? Cocktail pregnant?" Sofia pulled up her shirt and checked her belly. "Not really."

"No, still flat." Sara let her index finger run over Sofia's skin and stopped on the left hip bone. "This place needs two or three more triple choc cocktails."

"That's no fair to the one on the other side."

"Give it three cocktails too."

"That are six. You know each of these cocktails has enough calories to be a full lunch?"

"I couldn't care less because each of them puts a smile on your face like it's Christmas."

"Christmas…we'll have tropical Christmas this year. Do we get a Christmas tree or a Christmas palm tree?"

"What do you want?"

"Both."

"Then we get both."

"Great." Sofia pulled Sara in her arms. "Why don't we rest a few minutes before we get ready for bed? You haven't tried my bed."

"Is that an invitation?"

"Yes."

"Don't you think I should try to sleep alone in my bed?"

"No! We shared your bed the last two nights, you can't start a week with sharing beds and then stop right in the middle. The rule says you have to finish the week."

"The rule? Which rule?" Sara laughed.

"The sharing your bed rule."

"How can you make up rules that make no sense?"

"They make perfectly sense to me."

"I see." Sara closed her eyes. "I think Annie removed your name from the Miss Waikiki list."

"Probably."

"Is that okay for you?"

"Worse things happened to me. We can use the evening for something else, a barbecue for example. That's more fun than walking around a stage and smile foolish the whole time. My captain will be happy about the change. He said I'm supposed to win if I join a competition like Miss Waikiki but he also said I'm not supposed to be a stupid giggling chick; which is what you should be on stage. So he'll be happy I've a barbecue with beer instead of practicing smiling stupid."

"You don't smile foolish, you have a beautiful smile."

"And you are beautiful."

"Your words shocked Annie."

"With the right glasses she'll see I'm right."

"I think she's blind on this eye. Or both eyes."

"Not our problem."

Sara pulled Sofia in her arms. Right now she could fall asleep like this.


It was the first time Sara really worked overtime since she was in Honolulu. Twelve hours and the case was closed, a man who killed an elderly woman for only twenty dollars was off the streets and behind bars. A long and hard day, that ended the way it was supposed to end.

Leaving her bag in the kitchen, kicking her shoes in a corner, she changed into shorts and top before she stepped out on the balcony. At the end of the balcony was Sofia standing, apparently in deep thoughts because she didn't react when Sara stepped out.

They hadn't worked together, so far there had been only two cases they shared. Most times Sara was with Flea, letting the Hawaiian man show her all she had to know about the island and the people. There were judges she had to meet, lawyer she had to avoid and journalists that sometimes made their life harder. Plus all the people in the lab she met, had to remember names and what they worked. So many new things, sometimes it felt like it was too much but she knew, in a couple of weeks she would be fine and sorted out.

Leaving the thoughts of work behind Sara's eyes went back to Sofia. It was still a little bit strange that the former blonde was a brunette now. All these years Sofia had been blonde, seeing her with her natural hair color was unusual. It suited her, no doubt about that. Probably there was nothing that doesn't suit her, Sofia was…Sara felt stupid when she thought this, but Sofia was beautiful.

And she became more and more important to her. Sara's nightmares, Sofia's diet that got out of hands, these things made them grow tighter and tighter. And Sara liked that. She liked the fact that she fell asleep next to Sofia and woke up next to her. When the detective was gone in the evening because she took some special training hours for her lieutenant test, Sara missed her. More than she wanted, more than she thought was good for her.

God, this woman turned her world upside down.

Out of the blue there was this urge to hug the detective again. The last days this feeling appeared quite frequently, confusing and sometimes even scaring Sara. This wasn't her, this felt so strange. At the same time it felt good too. Quietly she stepped behind Sofia and embraced her.

As soon as Sofia realized it was Sara who was behind her she relaxed.

"Hey, you've been working overtime."

"Yes. Sometimes this happens in paradise."

"Are you all right?"

"A little bit tired."

"There's dinner for you, I had no idea how long you stay away so I ate without you. Yes, I did eat."

"I didn't say a thing."

"No, you didn't. But you worried I skipped dinner. I didn't. Eating dinner isn't as much fun as it used to be but I'm working on it. Bite by bite I like it more."

"Good to hear." Sara buried her face in Sofia's hair, smelled the shampoo. Being with her, being so close to her, made her relax, made her feel safe, happy, like nothing could ever happen to her as long as she was with Sofia. And it created little butterflies in her stomach that got very active.

"Do you have the day off tomorrow?"

"Yes. The case is closed I can stay at home. What about you?"

"Same. Trop wants me to have some time to prepare for the test. He said, he doesn't want me to just pass, he wants me to be the best. A lot of pressure."

"Can you handle the pressure?"

"Sometimes it scares me, it makes me wonder if I'm really that good, if I will disappoint him. Fact is, when this is over I'll sleep better. Until then I try to see it as positive pressure."

"You're a little bit tensed, I can feel that."

"Nothing to worry about."

"Mhm." Sara remembered the spot between the shoulder blades where she kissed Sofia once and the detective relaxed immediately. Moving the long brown hair away with her face she found the spot and kissed it again.

"You remember the spot." Some of the tension fell off Sofia right away.

"Yes." Holding Sofia tight with her left arm and caressing the belly softly with the right hand, Sara continued to kiss the spot. With each kiss, with each stroke, Sofia relaxed more and Sara felt also more comfortable.

"You can go on like this the whole night if you want, it feels good. I might start to purr at one point."

"I didn't know I've a little kitten in the house."

"Black panther, please."

"Sure. You're a little kitten, not a dangerous panther, get real Sofia."

"I'm very dangerous."

"Of course."

"I am." Sofia turned without leaving Sara's arms. "You have no idea…" The rest of the sentence was carried away by Sara's gently kiss. Sofia's lips so close to her own, having her in her arms, smelling her, drowning in the blue eyes, all these things leaded to this kiss. Something Sara wanted to do for a while but was too scared to do, even to admit it to herself. It was wrong, at least she thought so. The moment when her lips touched Sofias she knew, it was right.

Holding on to her, not separating their lips, Sara started to push Sofia back into the apartment. Watching the sunset and having dinner were things that could wait. There was something much better on her mind – and on her lips.


Waking up in bed next to Sara wasn't something new for Sofia. Waking up next to her and wearing nothing was new. Feeling the skin of the other woman on her own, she smiled and turned to have a look if the dark brunette was awake. Sound asleep. So cute.

Pulling Sara deeper in her arms Sofia was glad that they both had the day off. The sun was up, it was way after getting up time if they had to work and she felt like spending the whole day in bed. Next to Sara. In Sara's arms. Kissing Sara. Twenty four hours ago she had no idea how close she was to this. Like she had no idea what Sara felt for her. Yes they were close, yes they spent the night together in one bed but it never happened anything. Didn't look like anything would ever happen.

When Sara stepped behind her, embraced her, it felt like her heart was riding the wildest and fasted roller coaster in the world. Adding kisses, especially on this special spot, made her almost lose contact with reality. If she hadn't leant onto Sara, she had fell down. Her knees were pure jelly, that she managed to turn was a wonder she couldn't understand. Turned to be kissed.

Somehow they made it to Sofia's bed, never breaking the kiss. Finally able let themselves fall, not wasting energy on keeping them on their feet, they took more time for more kissing, let their hands discover each other, stroking, holding, touching. There wasn't a time, there wasn't a universe, there was only them and nothing else existed anymore.

Not able to resist the lips that were so close to her own, Sofia bent a little bit forward and kissed Sara. A little smile appeared on the face of the investigator and the kiss was responded.

"You look so peaceful when you're asleep."

"I slept very good." Sara's eyes opened slowly. Deep hazel brown eyes met deep blue eyes. In a comic there had been hearts all over their faces.

"Good. No nightmare in a new bed?"

"There was no time nor place for nightmares."

"True." Sofia slipped on Sara and kissed her. She could continue like this for the rest of the day, the rest of her life. Who needed work when you could kiss a woman like Sara?

"Since when are you awake?"

"Only a few moments. I'm glad we don't have to get up early today."

"Do we have to get up at all?"

"No, no we don't. I like the idea of spending the day with you in bed."

"Good. I don't feel like leaving the bed or your arms."

"What do you feel like?"

"This." Sara pulled Sofia closer and kissed her, her tongue gently asking for entrance and when it was permitted, she let her tongue dance with Sofias. Who needed a world outside when in your own world you could kiss Sofia?


"You know what we haven't done for a while?" Sofia asked after she finished dressing herself up.

"Kissing?" Sara bent over and kissed her girlfriend. Ohmygod! Girlfriend! She wasn't kissing the annoying and smug blonde detective, she kissed the beautiful, sensitive, brunette future lieutenant. One evening could change so many things and Sara was still not completely sure if she was awake or dreaming. Was this real? Were she and Sofia really…a couple? Was she this lucky?

"Yes, the last kiss has been a while – like a minute."

"This long? I think I need a second one to handle the shock."

"You're cute." Sofia smiled and snuggled into Sara's arms. Who would have thought that the first so rude, unfriendly and abrasive investigator could fall in love with her? Wasn't she a lucky woman?

"And hungry. Why don't we go to the little take away around the corner and get us some lunch? We can ask Barbara if she wants something too. I haven't seen her for a few days."

"It's eleven, the best time to see her."

"You're after her tea and cookies."

"Biscuits, my dear. They're scones."

"In proper English they're cookies."

"Sure." Sofia took Sara's hand and pulled her down the stairs. She could hold hand with her girlfriend. Gosh, she was as foolish as she had her first relationship at all.

They found Barbara in her kitchen, the kettle in her hand.

"Oh, you're at home."

"Yes, a day off."

"And just in time for a cup of tea. What a coincidence."

"More or less. We skipped breakfast and were about to go to the take away around the corner and wanted to ask you if you want something too." Sofia smelled the freshly brewed tea. Like in her grandmother's home.

"I've a stew on the oven, why don't you eat this with me?"

"No, we get something from the take away, don't worry."

"Sara, I don't worry about food. There's enough for all of us. Or do you want something else because there are sausages inside."

"I can give them to Sofia."

"Wonderful. Have a seat, I get you some tea." Sara and Sofia took a seat on the bench. Immediately their hands connected.

"Maybe the whole bag of biscuits is better than one, you are hungry. Oh no, wait, I've something better. Excuse me." She left the tea on the table and vanished for a few seconds.

"What do you think of a big slice of carrot cake?"

"I love carrot cake." Sofia said.

"Take some, I made it yesterday."

"Wow." She cut a slice for each of them. "Cake for breakfast, what a great way to start your day. Add a fresh cup of tea and the day has to be good."

"Are you used to English breakfast tea now, Sara?"

"No, not really. A real cup of coffee is more my cup of tea."

"Everybody is different. Are you scared Sofia will run away?"

"No, way?"

"You hold her hand so tightly." Barbara smiled.

"There were two possibilities: I hold on to her hand or I sit on her lap. I considered this as the more formal way."

"She wants me as close as possible. Let me take the biscuit away from you." With fast fingers Sofia stole the little biscuit next to Sara's cup of tea.

"You're a thief."

"No, I'm a trader."

"What do you trade for my cookie?"

"Biscuit. You get a kiss later."

"Never put something good on hold when you can it imme-diately." Barbara advised.

"I considered it as not formal to kiss her at the table."

"Sometimes you have to let go of the protocol."

"Don't tell the Queen." Sofia kissed Sara.

"Since when are you more than housemates? This is the first time I see you kissing."

"Last night. I stood on the balcony, enjoyed the last rays of the sun when she embraced me and started kissing a very sensitive spot. When I turned she changed from my neck to my lips, a very good change. And I could kiss her the whole time, don't I not have the most beautiful girlfriend on this planet?"

"No, that's me. I've the most beautiful girlfriend on this planet." Sara corrected before Barbara could answer Sofia's question.

"No, your girlfriend needs some more cake, cocktails and chocolate so she puts on some weight. You don't like to see her rips."

"You gave up your diet? A very healthy choice."

"Otherwise I wouldn't eat carrot cake. It was stupid, I still have these diet ideas on my mind, count calories, but I'm working on forgetting them. With Sara's help I will get over it."

"The stew will help you too."

"I thought something like that. One bowl has more calories than I'm supposed to eat in three days. Don't look at me like that, Sara, I stop it. Barbara, do you have ice cream?"

"No, only cake."

"Cake is breakfast, I need ice cream for dessert."

"You stay!" Sara stopped Sofia from getting up. "I go and get it."

"Sara, I…"

"You stay!"

"Why? Do you think I wanna leave and throw up?"

"Don't be stupid. Please. Let me go."

"Okay, if it makes you happy."

"Thanks." Sara stroke softly over Sofia's cheek and left the kitchen.

"Why are you angry, Sofia?" Barbara took a sip of her tea.

"I'm not angry…"

"You think she wants you to stay because she doesn't trust you."

"I never did that, throwing up after I ate something. The last days I was a poor eater, it was wrong to be on a three hundred calories diet but I never threw up."

"Did you consider that Sara has something else on her mind why she wants to go herself?"

"Like what?"

"You're in love, it's new, it's special, maybe she wants to get you a special treat? She knows what you like, what if she wants to get you something nice for dinner? Or a bottle of wine you can share later on the balcony, watching the ocean arm in arm. Think romantic, Sofia, not paranoid. She is in love with you, she wants you happy and not upset."

"You think?"

"Honey, I've been married for over thirty years, I can remember the first time my husband and I were together. He loved to sneak away to get me little surprises. Give your girlfriend some credit."

"I overreacted." Sofia sighed.

"Yes."

"Shall I leave and get her something? As an apology?"

"No, you can show her that you're sorry, no need to buy something. I'm sure she prefers a kiss more than a flower."

"Hopefully." It had been a while that she was in a relationship, maybe she needed to get used to it again.


The two person hammock was one of the best new things in their apartments. It gave Sara and Sofia the chance to share a hammock, having enough space and more comfort.

"Are you nervous?" Sara played with Sofia's hair. Tomorrow was the first test for the lieutenant rank.

"Yes. I can feel a lot of pressure."

"Trop won't bite your head off if you don't make it."

"No, he won't but I will be very mad with myself. I put a lot of work into it, it's a chance I don't want to miss out. It's a long way to become a captain."

"You will make it, you're a natural leader."

"Am I? The last weeks I showed a lot of weakness, not the best presuppose for a captain."

"We are all weak or unsure at some points. It's human."

"I'm supposed to be a captain, not a human."

"Every cop is a human with mistakes and weaknesses." Sara kissed the hair of her lover. It amazed her how Sofia could be so self-assure, so smug during her work and so vulnerable when she was at home.

"Will you be disappointed when I don't make it?"

"Sofia, if it's for me, you can stay a detective for the rest of your life, become a CSI again or do something entirely different. Your occupation has nothing to do with my feelings towards you. I love you, no matter how you earn your money. When you tell me tomorrow you skipped the tests and applied at a cocktail bar as a waitress that's okay for me. As long as it makes you happy what you're doing it's what I want."

Sofia kissed Sara. "I love you."

"Now that's something I care about a lot."

"That's something that won't change. How could I…" The cell phone of the detective rang. With a sigh she put it up from the little chair next to the hammock. "Yes?"

"Honey, are you prepared?"

"Yes mom." Of course her mother. Probably her mother was more excited than Sofia was. Captain Curtis wanted her daughter to be a captain maybe more than Sofia wanted it herself. Being a member of a traditional cop family put pressure on everybody's shoulders.

"How do you feel?"

"I'm excited."

"You did all the preparation?"

"No, I never wasted a thought of it and if you haven't called, I had forgotten about it."

"Don't be cheeky, young Miss."

"Stop treating me like I'm a baby." She was so far away from her mother and still it was like the older woman tried to interfere with her life. The kindergarten time was over, Sofia made her own decisions.

"I worry."

"You don't have to worry, I'm fine."

"Do you have something to occupy your mind?"

"Yes."

"Is Sara with you?"

"Of course, she's always with me." Sofia blinked at her girlfriend. So far she hadn't told her mother that Sara and she were a couple. It was enough when her mother thought about the lieutenant test all the time, she didn't need her being all over her relationship as well.

"What about Christmas?"

"We have to work on Christmas but we'll celebrate after work with Barbara."

"Your father and I have the week between Christmas and the new year off, we booked a flight to Hawaii today. After our daughter never invited us."

"I have no idea when you have time, you're always welcome, mother."

"We arrive on Christmas Eve. Shall we look for a hotel room or do you have a place for your parents in your apartment?"

"You can have my whole apartment."

"You need a place to sleep too, especially when you have to work."

"I have a place to sleep, don't worry. Sara and me get up the same time, we make her apartment the work place so you have all the time to relax and sleep in when you use my apartment."

There was silence at the other end for two or three seconds. "Are you and Sara a couple?" It wondered Sofia that her mother needed so much time to get to this. Usually the relationship of her daughter was something the captain paid a lot of attention to. The only explanation why it was different this time had to be the facts that Sofia was in another state and about to become a lieutenant.

"Yes."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"You never asked."

"I did now."

"And I answered."

"You always did that, you never told me when you were involved. I wonder how many relationships you had without telling me about them."

"A few dozen as I go to bed with everybody I meet."

"Sofia!"

"Mom, I told you about all the serious ones. Whenever I was involved with somebody for a longer time, you met this person. If you haven't asked about Sara today, I had told you when you were here Christmas. I don't hide her, I'm not trying to keep her a secret. Why should I? She's the most amazing person I've ever met."

"Give her to me."

"What?"

"You heard me."

"I warn you, mother. If you try to scare her, interrogate her like a suspect or do anything else to make her feel uncomfortable, you'll be in trouble with me and you won't be welcome anymore for Christmas."

"Are you telling me not to visit you?"

"I'm telling you to behave like a guest and not like a police captain. This isn't your division, do you understand me?"

"We need a serious conversation about how you treat your mother."

"Just the way she understand me best. And now I ask Sara if she wants to talk to you, if she doesn't, you will accept that without holding it against her, understand? Because if the mother of my girlfriend would order her daughter to handle the phone over, I might not want to talk to her." Sofia looked at Sara. "You're free to say no."

Sara smiled. "It's okay, give me your phone."

"She starts being not the way she's supposed to be, end the call."

"I'll be fine." Sara took Sofia's cell phone. "Good evening, Captain Curtis."

"Miss Sidle, how is Sofia?"

"Annoyed."

"Good, that brings her in a good state of mind for tomorrow. Will you be there for her?"

"Before and after the test, of course."

"Is it okay for you that my husband and me will come over for Christmas?"

"Of course, you're always welcome here. Sofia misses you even when she didn't mention it."

"I know she does and so do I. Did you talk her out of joining the competition for Miss Waikiki? She talked a lot about it and suddenly she cancelled her attendance."

"There's a possibility that I've something to do with that. Mostly she did this because she needs to concentrate on her test, being a lieutenant is more important to her than being Miss Waikiki."

"For a mother it's important to know the spouse of her daughter cares about her, I can see it's the case. I'm glad you're with her and if she gives you a hard time don't hesitate to call me. Sofia might be an adult but I can still give her lecture and honestly I think she needs one every now and then."

Now Sara had to laugh. "I'll keep that in mind, thanks Captain. You raised a good child and you'll be proud of your lieutenant daughter."

"I am already proud of her."

"She knows that. Do you want to talk to her again?"

"No, I leave the two of you alone. Thanks for the little conversation."

"You're welcome. We look forward to see you Christmas." Sara ended the call. As soon as she put the phone on the chair, Sofia pulled her into her arms and kissed her.

"You're amazing."

"You mentioned that before."

"I love you."

"You can't mention this too often."

"My mother likes you, I can tell."

"She needs to know her daughter is fine."

"Yeah, must be a mother thing. Shall we invite your mother as well?"

Sara's eyes became dark and Sofia regretted the question at same moment.

"No, that's not a good idea."

"Okay…I'm sorry, I didn't want to…" All Sofia knew was that Sara's father was dead, she had no information about her mother and Sara never mentioned her.

"It's okay, Sofia. We can talk about the reasons after your test. It's not a nice story and I want you to have your head free. Become my brave lieutenant and we'll talk about my mother, why she can't come.

"Okay. Sorry again."

"No need to be sorry. It's nice to know you want my family here too. Under different circumstances it would be nice, so you have to be happy only with my presence."

"You are all I want, all I need." Sofia kissed Sara gently. She was the only person she needed to be around, all other were welcome but Sara was a must have.