A/N: Thought I'd be nice and put this up as soon as possible. Yup, I love painting Gina as the little helper in my stories, she's one of the only decent coppers in Sun Hill who isn't a murderer/rapist/madman/complete pillock.

It was inevitable she was having doubts. At least that's what Sheelagh was telling herself every time a wave of nausea hit and she was positive she couldn't go through with it. She'd dealt with enough rape victims to know this was a standard reaction, even if the culprit being a copper wasn't standard.

Yet Sheelagh wasn't naive enough to believe all her nausea was caused by worries over Gabriel. Samantha Nixon was also a contributing factor.

The kiss of the previous night had been completely unexpected and, she was trying to tell herself, completely unwanted. But looking back over what Sam had said and done recently it had clearly been heading that way. Something she might have realised had she not been otherwise occupied courtesy of Gabriel. The way the detective had invited her into her home, no questions asked; her insane protective streak with Gabriel. It was so obvious. The memory of kissing Samantha Nixon made her physically shudder. Then again, that much was true of any memories at that moment...

Gina had been right. Despite Sam's obvious awareness of what a rape could do to a woman around men she'd pretty much ignored the idea that Sheelagh would be wary of any closeness, be it with a man or woman. Of course, being thought of in a sexual manner would scare the hell out of her as would having an emotional connection with anyone. The more Sam thought about it the more convinced she was that Gina had got it spot on- the reason Sheelagh was pulling back was because they had that emotional connection. It didn't exactly delight Sam that she was the cause of more pain and confusion for the woman she was falling in love with.

'I'm not sure I can go through with this,' Sheelagh announced when she entered the Inspector's office at three o'clock. 'I'm sorry.'

'Wait, wait.' Gina's voice forced her to turn back from the door. 'What's brought this on?'

'I don't know why I thought I was that strong.'

'No, that's not an excuse, Sheelagh. You're one of the strongest people I know.'

'Alright,' she relented, taking a seat. 'I've had support up till now. It made the difference.'

'You mean Samantha?'

'Now that I can't rely on her I'm not sure if I can do it.'

'Despite what's happened I'm sure you can rely on her, you know.'

Sheelagh looked up quickly. 'Does she tell you everything?'

'Only what I can force her to,' Gina quipped then turned serious again. 'She just wants to help.'

'I know exactly what she wants.'

'No, you don't. You haven't talked to her about it. Samantha wants justice, she'd like to be there for you.'

Sheelagh bit her lip. 'You really think so?'

'Look,' Gina said, picking up her phone. 'I'll call her. She'll come with us if you want.'

'Okay. That sounds fine.'

It had to be a good thing, didn't it? Gina had sounded confident enough that Sheelagh had asked for her to be there, at least it meant she was practically over the kiss. And, after all, the only thing Sam wanted was to be her pillar of strength, anything else was unlikely and part of her imagination.

Gina and Sheelagh were waiting with a taxi when she reached the front entrance. Despite her best efforts she couldn't quite decipher the expression on Sheelagh's face though her stance did show nervousness. Of course, that was probably because of the crime she was about to report. Seeing her approach, Gina hopped in the front passenger seat. Sheelagh lingered slightly, waiting until Sam reached the car.

Unsure of what to say she waited for her Irish colleague to speak. 'Thanks for agreeing to this.'

'I just want to help,' she replied. 'You know that.'

'You're only here because I need you here, not because I want you with me.'

That was a bit of a contradiction, wasn't it? Still, it was one she was willing to accept. 'I can live with that.'

The pair got in the back seat, Sam being careful not to touch Sheelagh in any way. That was all academic though- when the taxi started moving Sheelagh reached across for her hand and Sam was only too happy to clutch it tightly.

'That was awful.' Sheelagh leaned against the wall as she and Sam came out of the interview room. Gina was waiting on a nearby seat and, again, Sheelagh inwardly thanked the Inspector for forcing her hand on the Samantha issue.

'I know,' Sam answered. 'But you handled it brilliantly.'

'You're lying. But thanks.'

'You alright?' Gina asked, standing up.

'Yeah, fine.'

Sam wasn't convinced, Sheelagh knew that as the detective said, 'How about a stiff drink?'

'That's a great idea,' Gina said. 'I know a quiet place.'

Waiting until the Inspector moved further ahead, Sheelagh looked to Sam. 'It's good news isn't it?'

'Of course it is. He'll get what he deserves. Legally, anyway.'

'Well, thanks for your support.'

'Sheelagh, I just wanted to...'

'You don't have to,' she interrupted. 'It's in the past. I just want to get through this and get on with my life.'