Provenza was on his way home. Andy was worn out, almost like he'd watched a toddler for days, but he'd had a great time with his best friend. The two had played tourist all over New York, and Andy had head enough grumbling from Provenza about walking everywhere to last him a lifetime. They'd even done a good deed; they'd helped Emily, and while Andy knew Provenza wanted to hate her because her last name was Raydor, even the old guy had grown fond of her. It had been a good visit, and now, Andy was focused on getting to work.
Andy thought about Emily as he walked and hated that she'd never found her wallet. Emily had looked everywhere, but at the end of the day, her wallet had disappeared, whether she'd dropped it, or it had been stolen. Still, she had been smart and had not been carrying her credit cards, so that played in her favor. Andy had checked on her by text yesterday, after Provenza had asked him about Emily twice, and she'd already applied for a replacement ID card. While she couldn't replace the lost cash, she had told the men she would be just fine. The guys felt better, too, knowing her apartment was more secure. Provenza, who had complained about going to the hardware store, ended up suggesting the upgraded locks and bolts. The two men joked they bought out the store, but they installed everything for Emily and left her feeling she was safe. It felt good, and Andy told himself she was a lot like the college students he was hired to protect. If it had been any of them, he would have done the same thing.
After their encounter with Emily, they met up with Ang the next evening for dinner. They retold their story to her, of helping Emily, and she said she was also proud of the men for helping a young lady in need. Provenza had enjoyed Ang, and the three had laughed through dinner. It had been a fun night; overall, it had been a great visit, and now, it was time to focus on work again.
Because Andy had shifted his work schedule with Provenza's visit , he now had only one day off over the weekend. He'd shifted to working Saturday, off Sunday, and then he had a regular Monday-Friday work schedule after that. He didn't mind; it wasn't like he had a date anytime soon. His dating prospects were a little bleak at the moment, but he was starting to be okay with that. A friend from work had told him he wanted to set up Andy with his neighbor, and Andy was just waiting on that to happen. With his work schedule, going out in the next couple weeks was going to be tough anyway.
The week continued, and work was work. He spent his Sunday finally going to a baseball game. The season had finally opened just after Provenza had gone home, so now the two men were comparing stats on their text messages. It was odd for Andy to not be at a Dodger game in California, but he was ready to embrace New York and the Yankees. Sadly, his bad luck seemed to have traveled with him, as the Yankees lost 4-0 in a game that seemed to go one forever. Being a true baseball fan, Andy sat through the whole game. By Monday evening, the long week was wearing on him already, the one day off suddenly feeling like it hadn't been enough. All he wanted to do was to grab a quick dinner, go home, and crawl in bed.
He wasn't in the mood to cook anything, not that he really ever was, but tonight, he just wanted fast and simple. He decided to grab soup and a sandwich at the local coffee shop, where he was now, a regular. The weather was warming, but it still had a chill to it, especially this evening as he walked toward it from work. The soup would be perfect, and he'd already decided to eat it there while it was hot. His plans were almost ruined as he walked inside and ran into someone he really didn't want to see.
"Raydor?" Andy asked as he stepped into the coffee shop and glanced to his right. She didn't appear to have noticed him, as she was seated at a table, engrossed in a book. She looked up at the sound of her name, and her eyes narrowed when she recognized Andy.
"Lieutenant Flynn, we meet again," she sighed and closed her book. Andy gave her a quick nod and walked toward her table, intent on being polite and now, getting his food to go.
"I really didn't expect to run into you here. Your daughter," he shrugged, "I see her all the time, but you? You realize you live on the West Coast not the East."
She rolled her eyes, "Yes, I'm well aware. Here, I thought if I ran into you, I would be polite and thank you, but with your attitude, I'm reconsidering that right now."
"Thank me?" Andy raised an eyebrow to her.
"Yes, for helping Emily with her lock and lost wallet. Emily being Emily, the independent young woman she is, didn't tell me about her mess. I only discovered it when I arrived today that she'd lost her wallet and to my surprise, had installed new locks. Then, she came clean about all of it. So, thank you. She told me you and Lieutenant Provenza, of all people, replaced her locks."
"Oh, yeah, umm, sure," Andy shrugged. "We just did what we'd want for our own kids, for any of them to be safe. Her old locks were terrible."
Sharon nodded, "They were. I got on her about them several times, but she is her own person."
"Reminds me of someone else I know, thinking she's her own independent self," he eyed Sharon. She ignored the comment and reached for her purse.
"Look, Emily told me you paid for everything and refused to take any money for it. I can't let you do that," she said as she pulled out a wad of bills and folded them as she passed them to Andy. "Please," she nodded, "take it."
Andy raised his hands in defense, "No, really, I'm not taking that. I just did what I'd want for my own daughter. She's a good kid. Keep your money. It felt good helping her, doing a good deed. I can't take your money."
Sharon looked to him, now surprised, "Really? Please, I know you didn't want to take money from her, seeing as you probably thought of her as a starving artist," she let out a slight chuckle, "but, I insist."
"And, I refuse," he shrugged. "Captain, don't worry about it. Just give her the cash. She had some stolen or lost or whatever," he waved his hand, "and she'd only take twenty bucks from me when I offered her any cash to replace hers. Just give it to Emily, and if she refuses," he smiled as he thought about it, "just hide it somewhere in her apartment where she'll find it after you leave."
"I am pleasantly surprised by your generosity, Lieutenant," she nodded. She smiled slightly, "I just might have to hide cash for her. That's a good idea. She won't let me help her otherwise."
"See, there you go," Andy gestured. "Look, I'll get out of your hair."
"Lieutenant," Sharon called to him as he started to turn, and Andy turned back toward Sharon. She now had a guilty expression on her face, "I, ahhh, ummm, need to apologize too." Andy gave her an odd look, and she gestured wildly with her hands, "I was horrible to you on the phone weeks ago when I accused you of chasing after Emily. I am sorry for that. I realize now you were and are just trying to be kind. Please accept my apology."
Andy pursed his lips a moment and then nodded quickly, "Apology accepted. I was blown away you thought that, but when I told my sister about it, she told me she'd even thought the same thing. So, apparently, you weren't too crazy in your thought, even though I can assure you I wasn't trying to date her. Ang, my sister, told me I flirt with almost anyone," he shrugged. "It's not something I was trying to do with Emily, so I am sorry if she had the wrong idea."
"Oh, no, no," Sharon held her hand toward Andy and continued, "Emily did not think that. I did. When I told her I'd gone off on you, she was mortified and said it wasn't like that either. I was a mom, thinking of her daughter, and I'm sorry."
"Consider the issue put to bed," he said and then groaned quietly at his choice of words. Sharon raised her eyebrows, but she said nothing. "Look, just know if Emily needs anything, please tell her to contact me. I am happy to help, and I gave her my contact information and condo number if she's ever in a bind like losing her wallet again. I know you are normally thousands of miles away, which does have me curious about you being here now. Emily said you were here a couple weeks ago."
"I was," Sharon nodded. "I have a lot of leave, and I really miss her right now. Work has been stressful, and I'm just trying to take some time for myself, to visit my kids. I have a lot of airline points from my credit card, so even the cost isn't really an issue right now. Besides, my birthday is next week."
"Oh," he raised his eyebrow, "well, I hope it's a good one here with Emily. Happy Birthday," he offered a small smile and shrug.
"Thank you," she told him, "but I wasn't trying to solicit that from you in telling you that. Emily and I will be together, and whatever we do, it will be a lovely day."
"Well," he tapped the chair he had his hands resting on and nodded his head toward the counter, "I should be going. I had a long day at work, and I'd really like to get home."
"Oh, yes, I'm sorry to have kept you," Sharon told him. "Have a good night."
Andy nodded to her, "You too, Captain." He walked to the counter and shook his head as he thought about running into Raydor again here in New York. It was surprising, but it wasn't, not with Emily living nearby. He took a moment to focus on his order, and then thankfully, he didn't have to wait long for his soup and sandwich order. He knew that he would have to at least give a nod to Raydor again when he left, and really, he just wanted to get it over and go home. As soon as he collected his food, he took a deep breath and turned toward the door. Andy took a quick glance toward her and then a nod of his head since he caught her gaze. "Night," he said again.
"Lieutenant, you are welcome to join me if you like," Sharon called to him and gestured to the empty seat. He just gave a slight shake of the head.
"Thanks, but I hope you don't mind if I just head home. I'm exhausted," he told her.
"Of course," Sharon gave him a small smile. Her book was face down on the table, and she had a half full cup and an empty plate on the table. She followed his gaze, "Emily is working late, which is not a problem. I came over here for a quick bite to eat. It's probably a shock to know she has almost no food in her apartment," Sharon smiled. "They also make the best tea here, at least the best tea I've found in the neighborhood. I probably should be going soon myself."
"Well," he nodded, "have a good night, then. Please give my best to Emily."
"I will, Lieutenant," she said as Andy started to the door.
"Andy," he turned and called back to her. "Look, I'm no longer Lieutenant Flynn; I' m retired from that, and I've never been big on carrying titles into retirement. It's just Andy."
"Oh, yes, my mistake," she frowned. She thought a moment and looked back to him, "Sharon," she shrugged.
He eyed her, "You're not retired, and no matter what, you still outrank me. Evening, Captain."