It was now mid-September. Andy and Sharon had been talking to each other quite often since she'd returned to L.A. Their conversations had gotten easier, but it had taken effort from both of them; talking more often had been a process. Yes, they were awkward at first, both not sure what to say, but the two had been talking more and more. As Andy sat in his office during lunch, his mind drifted to that first evening after Sharon had flown home.
"Andy, hi," she'd told him as she started to get nervous. "It's Sharon."
"Hi," he laughed lightly. "You do realize I have caller id, and I knew it was you before you even answered the phone."
"Right," she chuckled, and then he heard her let out a long sigh. "I'm back home, back in L.A."
"Good," he told her. "Are you back at your condo, or are you in the car? How was your flight?" he asked, the questions just rolling from his mouth.
"Condo and fine," she said in a light tone. "My flight was fine. There were no issues, and thankfully, it got in about 15 minutes early. It's not much, but I'll take any early arrival I can just to get off that plane a few minutes earlier."
Well, now that we cleared up that," Andy teased, "what should we discuss?"
"I didn't imagine being nervous. Why am I nervous to talk to you?" Sharon asked him.
"Beats me," he teased again. "You weren't nervous several hours ago when we were kissing."
"Oh, you are embarrassing me now," Sharon sighed.
"I didn't mean to embarrass you. It is a bit odd, this whole thing now. I don't know what to discuss. I am a bit nervous myself," he told her.
"Why don't we just start talking about our days?" Sharon asked. "Tell me about yours, and I'll tell you about mine. That isn't a nervous topic, and we'll see how things go from there. Deal? We can do that each day, and it's feeling too forced, we know this isn't meant to be."
"Okay, so tell me about your day," Andy encouraged, and the two started talking.
As Andy thought about that first evening's chat, he smiled now thinking how easily the two were talking. They'd been talking almost each night as Andy went to bed. Sharon was usually on her way home from work. That was one thing he'd learned about her. She tended to work late, and she often left the office after 7:00. That was just as Andy was about to get ready for bed or was sometimes in bed, and the two would talk as she drove home. Andy felt better knowing she was home safely for the night, even though she was a fully capable police captain. It just made him rest easier. He'd enjoyed each conversation the two had on the phone. There usually ended up being a night or two each week Sharon couldn't talk. She'd often text him that she was stuck at work or busy with a case and couldn't break away to chat. Andy was finding himself more and more anxious about each call. Most started with the, "How was your day?" comment and then progressed from there. The two had discussed their kids, their jobs, and even their dating mishaps. They had not discussed their ex-spouses yet, and they had also not discussed future visits. Andy was hoping those things would come in time, but for now, he was enjoying any conversation he could have with her.
He took another bite of his salad and pulled up his sports stats on the computer. Andy's mind had been wandering when he'd really wanted to check out the sports stats. With it now being September, baseball was starting to wind down, and he was interested in which teams were heading to the playoffs. The Yankees were not; they were not having a good season right now, and that was driving him nuts. He shook his head as he read about the Dodgers latest game and decided to check on Provenza. He glanced at his watch, and with the time difference, he figured Provenza was enjoying a cup of coffee and his crossword puzzle at his desk.
"Provenza," Andy grinned when he answered. "What's going on with the Dodgers? I'm sitting here, eating my lunch, and I'm reading about their latest game. I hate they play too late for me to watch them, but after seeing the score from last night, maybe I'm glad I can't stay up to watch."
"Flynn, I blame you for the Dodgers," Provenza grumbled. "Julio, no, I'm not going to tell him you said hello!"
Andy chuckled, "Tell Julio I said hi too. What are you doing? You sound out of breath, and that would mean you are not at your desk."
"Oh, we are walking back to the office. Julio, here, was hungry and missed breakfast. I haven't asked why," he paused, and Andy knew Provenza was probably giving Julio a dirty look. "Besides that, the chief was already complaining about her desk drawer being almost empty of candy. So, Julio and I walked down to the diner for some food. They make that good cinnamon bread, and the chief loves their muffins. I only came with Julio because I really didn't want to hear Taylor any longer. That idiot was just sitting around in our office space talking about, well, I have no idea. So, I walked with Julio. He paid. I just came along to get away from everyone and also to make sure Julio ordered the right muffins," Provenza explained.
"Well, it doesn't sound like much has changed. I'd get away from Taylor too," Andy said. "I don't miss that guy at all. I do miss those muffins. I remember that place well."
"Yeah, be glad you don't have to listen to Taylor go on and on about nothing all the time. I'm not sure getting out of the office was the best idea. We still ran into Raydor," he grumbled.
Andy sat up a bit in his chair at the mention of her name. He took a deep breath even though he could feel his heart racing at the mention of her name. "Sharon," he paused to try and not sound too excited. "Where did you run into her?"
"Ahh, Julio," Andy heard Provenza said to him, "Flynn calls her Sharon because he's now BFFs with her daughter there in New York. Did I tell you he lives near her daughter?"
"Lieutenant," Andy heard Julio say into the phone, "that's messed up. You can't even move across the country without Raydor lurking. I can't believe she found some guy to take her on a breakfast date."
"Wait, what?" Andy paused trying to figure out what they were discussing. Andy had been sitting there before the call thinking about Sharon, hoping they would talk again tonight. They hadn't talked the night before, and now that he thought about it, he hadn't spoken to her now in two days. He suddenly felt a little jittery and decided to probe a little to see what he could learn. "You ran into her on a breakfast date?"
"Yes, it's a bit revolting; I'm aware," Provenza grumbled. "I am going to be pretty upset if I can't stomach my muffin now after seeing her all sappy over a guy. She was at the diner with some guy looking all cozy."
"Who was the guy?" Andy asked.
"Well, I don't know, Flynn! I wasn't about to go over to her table and ask. They were sitting together all cozy in the back, across from each other. She was the one facing us; we never got a look at the guy, but it looked like they were deep in conversation. Some suit, maybe another lawyer for Raydor to date. It was bad enough we saw the guy reach over for her hand. That's just not something you want to see with Raydor of all people. I know we helped Emily and all, but Raydor is still Raydor."
"I can't believe she was on a date," Andy sighed and shook his head. It was a good thing Provenza couldn't see him because he was running his hands through his hair now. A date? It was possible. They hadn't discussed being exclusive, even though Andy had no plans to date anyone else. Sharon had told him when she was here that she'd been out a few times, and he couldn't expect that to change just because the two had kissed and now talked often on the phone. Still, it bothered him, and it was now something he decided he wanted to discuss with Sharon during their next call.
"Flynn, hello?" Andy heard Provenza ask. "Care to share why you are calling? I know we aren't going to sit here like high schoolers and discuss who is dating each other."
"Sorry," Andy grumbled, his mood now shaken. "I was calling about the Dodgers. Why did you let them lose?"
"Me! I told you that I'm blaming you for the Dodgers. You move away, and they fall apart this season. It's your fault, Flynn," Provenza grumbled.
"Yeah, well, their season is now in the toilet, and the Yankees aren't much better. Here, I thought baseball season had so much potential this year," Andy told him.
"You're telling me. Julio, did you grab my coffee?" Andy heard Provenza ask.
"Lieutenant, why would I have your coffee? I have mine and the food for the office," he explained.
"Turn around!" Provenza yelled to him. "I need my coffee, and it's probably still sitting there. Flynn, we're going back to the coffee shop. This is your fault too; you distracted me."
"Amazing how I'm 3,000 miles away, and everything is still my fault," Andy pointed out to him.
"Glad you are finally seeing that," Provenza said.
"Hey, see what else you can find out about that date," Andy suggested.
"What date?" Provenza asked.
"The lieutenant has a date?" Andy heard Julio ask. Andy sighed and rubbed his hand across his forehead. The two were giving him a headache. Somehow a call to Provenza had turned into a group chat.
"No! I don't have a date! I mean, see what you can find out about Raydor's date," he told them.
"I'm not doing that!" Provenza said. "I'm not going anywhere near her. She might have been nice with the baked good after you and I helped Emily, but I have no intention to be friendly with her. It's bad enough you are. You can just ask her about her dating adventures when you see her. I'm sure she will be flying on her broom to New York soon enough."
"Whatever, I have to go," Andy grumbled, not wanting to mention Sharon had been in New York just a few weeks earlier, and he had no idea when she was returning. "Try to do some work today," he with that, he hung up the phone. He continued to replay Provenza's comment about asking Sharon about her dating adventures. He did need to do that. He was starting to realize he was getting attached to her, but apparently, she was not feeling the same way if she was on anther date. He knew he'd been on the end of that for years, the guy seeing women all the time. He didn't blame Sharon; he just didn't like it. He'd address it the next time they talked, and he was going to make sure that happened this evening. He was jealous; Andy knew that about himself. He hated feeling that way, but he was. This long distance dating wasn't what he'd hoped or expected. Never, in his life, did Andy ever believe he would be jealous about some guy dating Sharon Raydor.