He was sitting at his desk when Sharon came out of her office and walked by him. Her perfume made him smile even as he continued to look at his computer screen. It was hard to focus, but he was doing what Sharon had asked, trying to be professional even though he wanted to stand up, flash his flirty grin at her, and kiss her. Life was hard sometimes.

"Everyone," she called to the group. "We might have a case." Sharon looked around the room and frowned, "I guess we are not 'everyone' this morning. Julio is finishing in court, I presume?"

Andy nodded, "He and Tao are both finishing at the courthouse. I just got a text from Tao. They'll be here later this morning. Buzz is down the hall," he pointed in the general direction of electronics.

Sharon nodded as she looked to Amy, "We are needed in the morgue. I just looked over some paperwork Dr. Morales sent to me. He might have a case for us." Amy nodded and started to collect her things. Sharon turned back to Andy, "Any word from Lieutenant Provenza? He is coming in today, isn't he?"

Andy nodded, "Last I spoke to him, yes, but that was last night. He and Patrice were still sorting things, and he said he would be in mid-morning unless we needed him earlier."

Sharon listened and then told Andy, "Okay, please give him a call and ask him to meet us at the morgue in say, a half hour. I'd like him to be there if he's not too busy at home."

"Will do," Andy nodded and sat back down at his desk to call Provenza. He picked up the phone and started in on Provenza when he answered, "Are you planning to grace us with your presence today?"

"Please tell me we have a murder," Provenza groaned. Andy chuckled.

"You haven't even lived with her a week, and you're already regretting it, aren't you?" Andy asked him.

"Why are you calling, Flynn?" Provenza asked.

"Possible case. Your presence has been requested in the morgue-half hour. Be there," Andy stated.

"You sound snippy today. What's going on with you?" Provenza asked again.

"Nothing. I am just following orders. I'll see you at the morgue, you old goat," Andy told him and hung up. He stood up and poked his head in Sharon's office. "Provenza has been notified. He'll meet us there," he smiled sweetly to her.

"Oh good," she nodded. "Thank you. I hope we aren't disturbing anything important."

Andy shrugged, "Honestly, even if we were, he sounded like he needed an escape," he chuckled. "I gave the guy a hard time that he hasn't even had Patrice living there a week, and he's already sounding desperate."

Sharon nodded as she held back a smile, "I'm can only imagine. I'll finish this here, and then we can go to the morgue together."

"Sounds good," Andy knocked his knuckles on her door and winked. He turned back to his desk and got to work.

Almost an hour later, the team found themselves listening to Dr. Morales. Andy had told Sharon he was going to be professional, so he decided to start that by NOT calling her Sharon. It was hard because now, especially, he was already in the habit of her just being Sharon. Yes, he was well aware she was his boss, and that was no problem, but he had to admit it was hard not to call her by her name. It was her name, after all, and he'd spent much of the last several days getting to know Sharon much better on a more intimate, more personal level, but for now, he needed to focus and have her just be the captain.

"So, Captain," he called to her several times while they were in the morgue. He wanted to grin at her; he could tell his level of professionalism was putting her slightly on edge. She didn't back down either, dropping "Lieutenant" on multiple occasions herself. He was wondering how long they could keep up this banter. It was almost fun on some level. He hadn't heard Sharon call him lieutenant in a very long time, at least not as an official title. Sure, the two jokingly used their rank when they were alone together, but she was firing back with every captain he dropped.

"Flynn, what's the matter with you?" Provenza walked up to Andy's desk a short while later. The team had just been told their victim had arrived for a chat, and Andy, who was looking up records regarding registered gun owners, turned and looked to Provenza. Andy noticed Sharon, or really, the captain, had just walked out of her office and started toward the interview room where it appeared she and Amy were going to question the victim.

"What are you talking about?" Andy asked with an annoying hint to his voice. "I'm working. What's the matter with you? Paranoid? Already sick of your new living arrangements?" he smirked.

"No!" he threw up his hands. "I'm asking you; don't turn this around on me. What's going on with the captain this morning?"

Andy shook his head, "I'm not following. I don't think anything is going on. How would I know? Have you asked if anything is going on?"

Provenza narrowed his eyes, "Something is going on with her, and you're acting weird, weirder than normal."

"Oh, lay off Provenza!" Andy exclaimed as he stood. He'd noticed Buzz motioning for the two of them to head to electronics. "In case you haven't noticed, we have work to do. Buzz is motioning for us. I'm guessing the interview is about to start."

Provenza watched as Andy cleaned up his desk and started to electronics. "Flynn, what did you do on Saturday?" Something seemed off, and he wanted to get to the bottom of it.

"I saw Nicole and the kids," he told him, which was true. It was how he'd spent half his Saturday. "Unless you want to hear all about new ballet moves, I suggest you focus," he gestured for Provenza to enter electronics ahead of him. They took their places and focused on the interview.

The team worked throughout the morning on the case. Andy could tell Sharon had picked up on his trying to be the "poster boy for professionalism" and wanted to laugh that she'd fired right back at him each time. He was working at his desk when Provenza stepped out of the office. The rest of the team was either hard at work or getting a cup of coffee, so Andy saw this as a perfect time to have a chat with Sharon, or the captain.

"Captain," he knocked on her door as he opened it. While he might be putting more emphasis on her title, he wasn't changing his habits regarding her office. He was used to the simultaneous knock and opening of the door.

"Yes, Lieutenant," she said, as he entered. He left the door open, with a note to himself to lower his voice.

He grinned at her, "I've got a report back for you, Captain," he winked. Sharon accepted it and tried not to smile. She glanced over it, nodding as she read, and then she looked back up to him. She wanted to roll her eyes because he was flashing his famous smile at her.

"You're staring," she said quietly instead.

"Can't help it," he whispered as he put his hands on her desk and leaned forward. It appeared, to outsiders at least, that he was pointing out something on the paperwork he'd handed her. In reality, the two were just flirting. "I said I'd be professional. I didn't say anything about staring."

She nodded, as she bit her lip, "So, staring is professional?"

"It can be," he shrugged, "private investigators stare. Even we do that sometimes with suspects," he grinned.

"Hmm, your level of professionalism has been noted," she flashed a small smile to him.

He winked to her, "So has yours. Keep it up."

"I will if you will," she nodded. He chuckled, looking away for a moment. "Well, it's been noted, or so I think. Provenza is convinced something is wrong with you, and that I'm acting weird."

"You are acting weird. You haven't called me captain in a long time. Honestly, you usually don't call me anything at work. I'm sure he's noted the what, dozen times or so you've already called me that today?"

He grinned, "Who's counting? Hey, I'm just being that poster boy of professionalism I told you I could be. You are a captain, my captain, and I'm respecting your rank, just as you are being equally professional by calling me by lieutenant."

"We'll see who cracks first," she nodded to him as she stood. "Provenza is heading back in here. Let's go out and see what the team has found now." Sharon smiled as she moved by Andy. They rejoined the team to continue with the case.

They all plodded along throughout the afternoon. New details sent various team members in different directions. Andy had decided to wait out everyone to walk out with Sharon, and he tried to focus on his work. That was hard because any moment he allowed his mind to wander, it did just that; it wandered to thoughts of Sharon.

"Flynn," he looked up, not realizing he had been daydreaming again. "You know, the case today, not everyone slips after 20 years."

"Oh, yeah, I know," Andy sighed waving Provenza off. "Hard to hear, and it's hard to see a guy who has worked the program for so long start over. Guy looked like he was still punishing himself for slipping."

Provenza nodded, "Listen, are you okay tonight? You can come over to the house if you need to talk or get your mind off things. Patrice is cooking, as long as you don't mind a mess."

Andy shook his head, "Thanks, but I'm good. I'm going to catch a meeting or two. Really, I'm okay," he offered a small smile to Provenza and nodded.

"Fine, then. If you need anything, you know you can call, right? Even if you irritate me to no end and continue to act weird, you can always call," Provenza noted.

"Thanks, Provenza," Andy nodded to his computer. "I'm just going to finish typing this up, and I'll get out of here."

Provenza glanced to Sharon's office where she was working, "The captain okay?" he asked Andy.

Andy gave Provenza an odd look, "She should be. Why?"

"Just asking. She's been quiet today," Provenza told him. Andy just shrugged.

"Night, Provenza," Andy nodded and turned back to his computer. Once Provenza, the last member of the team, left, Andy stood up and knocked as he opened Sharon's door.

"Hey," he flashed his smile to Sharon. She looked up and returned the smile.

"Yes, Lieutenant," she smirked as she held back a bigger grin. Andy looked down, trying not to chuckle. He looked back up to her and nodded.

"Well played," he noted. "That was fun today. I wanted to see if I could interest the captain in a quick bite to eat?"

"Hmm, I'm not sure if it's appropriate to take your captain to dinner," she explained as she folded her hands and leaned forward on her desk. Andy took a step into the office as he continued to nod.

"That is true. I could almost call this a working dinner, almost," he flashed another grin. "I do want to talk to you about something, something from the case today."

"Oh?" she questioned as she looked up at him.

"Nothing serious, just something that got me thinking about my own life," he told her.

"I see," she nodded. "Yes, I'd be happy to get dinner. Anything in particular?"

"Something fast, if you don't mind. I'd like to catch a meeting," he told her.

"Hmm, I figured as much. Let's get going, then," she said as she stood and started to collect her things. The two discussed dinner, and they agreed to meet at a deli not far from Andy's AA meetings. Andy followed Sharon there, and once they had both parked, they met in front of Sharon's car where he held out his hand for her. She smiled as she put her hand in his to walk inside.

"I've wanted to do that all day," he said as he bumped her shoulder. She chuckled and nodded to him as Andy opened the door to the restaurant. She turned toward him before she walked inside.

"Hmm, I've had other thoughts," she teased. Andy closed his eyes and shook his head. He opened them to notice Sharon leaning up to kiss him quickly. He returned the kiss and squeezed her hand.

"And, you thought you didn't flirt with me," he whispered in her ear. She blushed as they found a table.

After the two had ordered, Sharon leaned forward to get closer to Andy. He was sitting across the table from her. "What did you want to discuss? I have an idea," she prodded him.

"Oh, well," he sighed as he reached across the table and took her hands in his. He held them, rubbing his thumb over her hands as he spoke, "this case," he shrugged. "It got me thinking. I'm almost 20 years sober. It was hard hearing that today, about how he fell off the wagon after 20 years. I wanted to talk to you about it because I know if it's hard for me to hear, it's got to be even harder for you. Here we are, just starting a relationship, and my past is thrown in your face today at work. I wanted to talk to you, to tell you that if it raised any doubts, questions, or concerns, I understand. I even understand if after hearing that all day, you want to step back and not purse things with us."

Sharon nodded as she looked to their joined hands, "I thought as much," she started, and then she corrected herself, "I thought that it might bother you. I would be lying if I didn't say his words hurt, yes. I thought about it some today too, but I'm not going anywhere," she squeezed his hand as she smiled at him. "Andy, I know you are a good man, a very good man. You have worked the program for almost 20 years. I know that nothing is a guarantee, that you could one day have a slip, but I also know that you are not going to let that define you. You would fight and start over if you had to do so. I'm not going to walk away. You want to stay sober; that makes you different from many, one man in particular we'd both like to strangle who has never had that desire," she sighed. Andy nodded, knowing she was speaking of Jack. "I'm not going to run because someday in the future, it may be hard. That's not a guarantee. Andy, you could go the rest of your life without another drink, which I hope you can do that. I want to be here for you, good times and bad, as some might say. Just keep talking to me like this. What did you want to do as soon as you realized the case was hitting you hard? You came to me. You wanted to talk to me," she met his gaze and smiled. "You made plans for a meeting. Andy, you did all the right things. I want you to go to your meeting tonight, more than one if you need. And, if that's not enough, I hope you will call me later. I'm here for you. This case is sad, yes, but it's not a premonition of your life story."

Andy nodded slowly as he offered her a sad smile. The two looked at each other for a few moments, speaking with their eyes and not their voices. He squeezed her hand as their food arrived. "Thank you," he nodded to her. "I needed to hear that, and I appreciate you saying all that. I want to talk to you, always," he added. "There's no one else I want to be open with this about more than you."

"I want that too, Andy," she smiled. WE will work through this together. We," she said again for emphasis. "I realize this ultimately falls on you, but know I'm here for you too."

The spent the rest of dinner talking, more about his alcoholism, but also some on lighter topics. By the end of dinner, Andy was feeling much better about things, and he promised to call Sharon after his meeting.

As he walked her to her car, hand in hand, he continued, "I may stay for more than one meeting," he told her.

"I hope you will," she nodded. "I'm going to go home, but call me later, please. I'll do whatever I can to help."

He raised his eyebrows as they arrived at Sharon's car, "Anything?"

Sharon started to laugh as she playfully smacked at Andy's shirt, "Well, maybe not anything, at least not yet."

He shook his head, "I had to try, Captain," he grinned and winked to her. She started to blush and looked away. "So, you're saying if I came knocking at your door in the middle of the night, you'd turn me away?"

She pursed her lips, "I'd turn you to the couch right now," she stated. She got a smile on her face and shook her head, "No, actually, I'd turn you toward Rusty's room. You two could bunk together."

"Oh," he groaned, "I'd never live that down."

"No, you wouldn't," she smiled, "but, I'd be there for you to get you through a rough patch, any rough patch. Best not to show up at my house in the middle of the night right now, Lieutenant," she whispered, as she started to play with his tie.

"You said right now," he pointed to her. "So, that leaves an opening for perhaps another day, some other middle of the night?"

"Perhaps," she smiled, "possibly some day in the future, and hopefully, it wouldn't be to get you through a rough patch."

"I'll take that for now," he winked. He leaned in and kissed her, taking his time before he broke apart from her. "I've got to go if I'm going to make the meeting."

"Call me later," she smiled. "I'll always answer, and I'm always here for you, Andy."

"I'm glad," he kissed her again quickly. "Get in," he gestured to her car. "Be safe going home. I'll talk to you later."

Sharon thought about their conversation on her drive home. She meant every word she'd told Andy. She wasn't going to turn her back on him, on their relationship, because there might be difficult days ahead. Sharon knew he worked very hard to maintain his sobriety, and she admired and respected him a lot for it. Truthfully, she'd already thought through a lot of the alcohol issues with Andy; she did long ago because she told herself well over a year ago she didn't want to continue growing closer to Andy, even as a friend, if she was worried about his alcoholism and what it could do to her. She'd been through it with Jack, and she wasn't willing to get hurt again if Andy wasn't serious about his sobriety. She'd learned very quickly that Andy was very serious, and she found herself even more attracted to him for that. It seemed silly, really, that she, the divorced wife of an alcoholic, was attracted to a recovering alcoholic because he was serious about staying sober. Yes, it was truly odd, but it was her reality. Sharon continued her drive, telling herself that once she got home, she'd make a cup of tea and stretch out on her sofa to think more about Andy. Tea seemed appropriate for the evening, considering her mind was focused on an alcoholic. Yes, she'd stretch out on the sofa, the very sofa she'd spent most of the weekend with Andy, and while he was at his meeting talking, she'd sit at home and reflect on the man who was warming her heart.

I always like how the show runs themes that are parallel to the characters' lives. I have often thought Sharon and Andy would have discussed this case in relation to their new relationship as I wrote here.