Disclaimer: I own nothing except my imagination.

A/N: This pandemic has been kicking my ass at work so trying to write lately was extremely hard but I'm on vacation for another week and a half and hopefully I can get a few updates up in that period of time.

Kim woke up the next morning, Adam and Mackenzie Ruzek on her mind. She had spent a nice evening with them, Mackenzie commanding everyone's attention in the room and Adam doting adorably on her. Her life had never been good to have kids, never finding the right man who could accept the career she had chosen for herself. The times she had been injured had been enough for her boyfriends at the time run for the hills, leaving her alone to go through it. She swung her legs to the side and pulled herself out of bed, needing to get to the district soon. She'd have to stop by for some food on the way in, so she simply pulled her hair in a top bun and went into the shower. She closed her eyes and she found herself thinking of the last moments on Adam's back porch while they talked about his wife. She could see the loss through his eyes and his doubts, but she knew the love he had for his daughter was what was keeping him going and she had to admire that. What she hadn't expected was the feelings that the little family was igniting inside of her. Seeing Mackenzie in the hospital had worked on some fears she never knew she could have and seeing Adam making sure that she was okay, she now understood a parent's devotion to their child and suddenly she felt the pull to have it all. Her mind kept turning as she washed herself and stepped out of the shower, pulling a towel around her chest. She knew it was selfish to have these thoughts considering the personal situation she was in and the state of mind Adam was still in. She wanted to know them more but didn't think she could make it look natural but that was another problem to work through. She changed into a pair of jeans and a plaid shirt before she clipped her star to her hip and slid her gun into holster on the other side. She read the paper while she waited for her coffee, the last real quiet time she would get before her day inevitably turned to chaos. She filled her cup minutes later, but she was surprised when someone rang the doorbell. She hadn't been here long enough to have people come over, her job not giving her much time for anything other than her occasional jog. She set her mug aside and went to answer. She smiled when she saw who it was.

"This is a surprise."

"Mackenzie wanted to bring you some breakfast, we made cinnamon rolls."

"That's really nice of you Ms. Mackenzie." Kim took the box Mackenzie handed her.

"They're still hot." She announced proudly.

"You got here just in time; I didn't eat breakfast yet."

"I hope we're not keeping you from work."

"I still have a few minutes." She invited them inside. "Coffee?"

"Sure."

"Day off?" She called over her shoulder.

"Last one, Platt's expecting me first thing in the morning."

"And I go back to school." Mackenzie said proudly.

"I bet you're really excited about that." Kim took one of the rolls out of the box and took a bite.

"Daddy's worried though."

"Kenzie." Adam reprimanded her but Kim ignored it all completely.

"Daddy just wants to make sure that you're okay." She watched her as she climbed on one of her island stools. She nodded her approval as Mackenzie pulled a roll out of the box and pulled out some milk and poured some in a glass and handed it to her.

"How are you doing really?"

"I'm nervous but I'm not sure why." Truth was that he would drop Mackenzie off at school on his way in the following morning and the school had great security so there really wasn't much to worry about, he just did.

"She'll be okay, right Mackie?"

"Mommy used to call me that too." Kim took a step back out of surprise and looked at Adam with a guilty look.

"I'm sorry about. That, I didn't mean." She stammered. "I didn't think."

"It's fine." He smiled politely at her just as her phone rang.

"Burgess." Adam listened and it only took him a couple seconds to know what it was about. He motioned for Mackenzie to finish up really quickly. "Yeah, I'll be right there." She hung up the phone and slipped into her back pocket. "I'm really sorry about that, we just caught a case."

"I figured." He smiled at her. "Come on Kenzie, put your shoes back on baby." She did as she was told, leaving Kim and Adam alone for a few minutes. "Why don't you stop by tonight for a coffee after you wrap up this case?" He asked rather nervously.

"Um, sure." She nodded. "Are you sure about this, I don't want to intrude on your last evening with Mackenzie?"

"Yeah, it's good. She'll probably be sleeping by the time you get to my place anyways." He smiled at her.

"Can I call you first? If it's too late, I'll send you a text?" She was now feeling uncomfortable in her own skin after what she was sure was a painful memory for both Adam and Mackenzie.

"Sure." Mackenzie was back and standing in front of him.

"Have a good day Kim." Mackenzie was bouncing on her heels.

"Thank you, Mackenzie." She smiled at her.

"Be careful out there." Adam added before turning around with Mackenzie and walking towards Kim's front door.

"I will." She walked them out, locking the door behind her. "Thank you again for breakfast."

"Anytime." Adam was already buckling Mackenzie in his car. Right now, he wanted to spend some more time with Mackenzie, probably in the safety of their yard for the remainder of the afternoon. After lunch, they played catch for a while until Mackenzie called for a snack, so he settled her at the kitchen table and made himself some coffee and watched her eat. He fell in a memory of Rebecca fixing Mackenzie a snack. It was a thing they always did together in the afternoon and on the rare days that he did get out of Intelligence early enough, he loved watching them together while they were unaware and seeing the smile on both of their faces always put one on his, even on the darkest days on the streets of Chicago.

"Daddy?" Adam snapped out of it at the sound of her voice.

"Yeah, sorry Kenzie. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I wanted to make sure that you were okay."

"You don't have to worry about me baby girl."

"Are you thinking mommy because Kim called me like mommy used to?"

"A little bit." He admitted with a smile. "How do you feel about that? I can tell her not to say It anymore if you don't like her to."

"I'm okay with it daddy, I really think mommy would like Kim." She mused, dipping her spoon in her yogurt again.

"And how do you figure?"

"Because she saved me, and she was there to help you when I was in the hospital."

"Well, I think you might be right." He chuckled. It was the last they spoke about it until it was time to go in bed.

"Is Kim going to come here after she finishes work daddy?"

"If it's not too late I think so, why?"

"Can I stay up until she gets here?" She asked hopefully with a pouty face, trying to convince Adam.

"I don't think so missy. You have school tomorrow."

"And you have work." She countered.

"And I'm an adult." He chuckled. "Come on, teeth and then bed." She steered her towards the bathroom after she finished changing into a pj.

"Fine." She sighed. "You're not fun daddy."

"I know." He laughed. He supervised the teeth brushing and settled her in bed before grabbing a beer and zapping aimlessly the channels. About an hour after Mackenzie had fallen asleep, Adam's phone dinged with a text from Kim and after assuring her that he was still awake, he waited for her to make an appearance. She knocked twice as to not wake up Mackenzie and Adam let her in with a smile.

"I hope this isn't too late."

"Not at all but Mackenzie will be disappointed she missed you by so little, she wanted to stay up to be able to wait for you." He offered her a beer that she gladly took.

"I'm sorry I missed her too. Listen Adam, I want to apologize for this morning, I didn't mean to make it hard for either you or Mackenzie, I didn't know, and it won't happen again."

"Kim, stop it." He put his beer down and placed both hands on her arms. "It was un-expected yes, but it's okay." He assured her. "I asked her how she felt about it this afternoon and she says that she's okay if you call her Mackie."

"What about you? I really don't want to make you feel uncomfortable." Adam could see that she was struggling with it and he hated that she felt that way.

"Can I be honest?"

"Please." He guided her towards the couch, and he sat her down, Kim pulling her legs into her body, Adam next to her with his beer wrapped inside both his hands.

"For the past months, it's just been Mackenzie and me. I've had to make decisions for the good of her because I couldn't go on the way I was. She's six and she did most of the heavy lifting in the weeks that followed Rebecca's passing. I hated myself for not being able to be the dad that she needed, that she deserved. Going back to the beat was hard in those first weeks. For one of the rare times in my career, I froze, and it made me realize that I needed to do better for her. I still have dreams about her, nightmares most of the time but getting back to a more normal life is helping. I have a great partner on the beat, Jim and he's helped me to adjust as well." Kim looked at him as he talked, not wanting to interrupt him. "Intelligence is family and he's become part of that family. And you, you I didn't see coming." He looked at her with a smile. "You fit into Intelligence with ease and I haven't seen Mackenzie take to a stranger like she's taken to you lately."

"She's a fun little girl to be around." She assured him.

"She's been shy with anyone outside of the usual suspects since losing her mom but you and Jim seem to reach that part of her that she's willing to open up like she used to so I should be thanking you for making her get out of her shell where she can actually be a six-year-old girl instead of being her old man's babysitter.

"You don't need to thank me for any of it, Adam." She reached across the couch and placed her hand on his forearm.

"You may not think that I do but I feel like I should." He took a pull of his beer because his throat was starting to be parched from his monologue. "I was wondering if I could take you out to dinner?" His throat was now dry from nervousness.

"Adam, I."

"I don't want you to feel like you have to, but I thought, maybe, I could get to know more about you?" It was the first time that he was actually entertaining the idea of seeing someone outside of a home setting and Kevin, Antonio and Jim's words kept playing in his head like a loop and he felt that he could take that first step with Kim.

"I would love too." She finally smiled brightly. "How about Aurelio's Pizza in the South Loop on our next shared day off?"

"Yeah, that sounds good." He smiled back at her, a sudden weight off of his shoulder.

"Perfect." She raised her beer bottle, and he bumped his against hers and Kim stayed for another half hour before calling it a night after a long day, Adam having shift in the morning as well.

A/N: So Adam opened up to Kim about the past few months, more than he has to anyone but Kim's presence is having a positive effect of both him and Mackenzie so Adam finally heads the guys advice and asks Kim out for dinner. The friendship will help heal Adam's heart but will it lead to more between them or just act as a catalyst? I hope you guys liked it and please take a few seconds to review before you go, your words always mean the world to me. - Sarra