A/N: Thank you all for the lovely reviews and messages on the last chapter. I'm glad most of you enjoyed it.

This chapter is retelling episode 5x19, where Sharon thinks about her upcoming wedding and Stroh's return and prepares for her interview for the Assistant Chief position.

As always, I'm very thankful to blossom-of-snow who edited this story.

Despite the restrictions on his diet, Andy insisted on making desert. Sharon wasn't sure where he found the recipe, but it held a lot of promise for being a tasty and low-calorie cake. Sharon hoped it was going to turn out as Andy expected, or Provenza would never let him live it down. They were hosting Patrice and Provenza for dinner tonight, and Andy wanted to cook all of the food. He put Sharon in charge of the wine, which he said was her turf anyway.

As she drove to the liquor store to buy wine, her focus was everywhere but the road. She was happy about her recent engagement and the speedy annulment of both of their marriages, even if it meant Ricky interfered. However concern that something would go wrong hindered unbridled happiness. Since she couldn't identify what exactly she feared, she hadn't shared her misgivings with Andy, but the feeling of an imminent disaster was eating her.

All she knew was that several anxiety-inducing incidents pummeled her. Between the reports that Stroh was back in the country and possibly offing people from his past, and the notion that she was a leading candidate for a position she didn't want, she felt that almost every aspect of her life was unstable. She couldn't understand it. She'd been through so much hardship in her life; why was she feeling so miserable when things were finally going well for her?

A blaring car horn, followed by a furious Are you fucking drunk? startled Sharon out of her reverie. She pulled to the curb and buried her face in her palms, the angry words affecting her more than they usually would have.

It took Sharon a few minutes to regulate her breathing and get back on the road. She took her time at the liquor store, choosing a couple of wines that she thought would suit Andy's Italian dinner and the occasion they were celebrating. After leaving the store, she focused her thoughts on what she was going to wear in the evening. As shallow as the topic may have been, it helped ease her mind and sharpen her focus on the way home.

The dinner with the Provenzas was pleasant and full of laughter, and by the end of it, Sharon and Andy had picked their wedding invitation template and assigned Patrice and the Lieutenant the task of putting postage stamps on all the envelopes. It felt good to know that their friends would help them plan the wedding.

It wasn't until Sharon reviewed the file Chief Howard compiled for her about Stroh that the worries started disturbing her again. After Andy asked her if she thought the threat of Stroh's return was real, Sharon had to admit to him that she was terrified. She didn't need to say the exact words for Andy to understand her. He could read her body language and facial expressions, so when Rainie walked into the room, mumbling something about changing her hairstyle, he helped her conceal the red file from her daughter.

Sharon took the opportunity to walk Rainie downstairs. Rainie was so busy with school and with Heather that Sharon would use every chance she got to spend time with her daughter, even if these moments were fleeting.

"You know, Geekdom is in a couple of weeks, and if you have time between work and the wedding planning, I'd appreciate it if we could go to the mall and get some shopping done," Rainie said as she and Sharon walked to their cars at the parking lot.

Geekdom. Crap. Sharon almost forgot about Rainie's expected participation in the Canadian con. That could pose a perfect opportunity for Stroh to harm Rainie. Even though Ricky was going to join Rainie, and both of her children would be accompanied by a bodyguard that Sharon's lawyer negotiated the con organizers to assign them, Stroh was crafty. No matter how many precautions Sharon took to protect Rainie, she won't be entirely safe.

But Rainie didn't need to hear that right now. "Sure, how about we go tomorrow afternoon?"

"Yeah, that's perfect. Thanks, Mom." Rainie kissed Sharon's cheek before ducking into her car.

Sharon watched her daughter drive away and released a deep breath. Maybe Rainie would be safer in Canada than in the United States. Stroh may find it harder to cross the border into another country while he was wanted all over the world. After all, no one knew for sure whether he left the country to begin with.

There wasn't much else Sharon could do but pray that things will turn out well, or as Andy liked to say, to accept the things she could not change. She wished that she could be that trusting. Andy's ability to view a bad situation as an adventure and a chance to learn and grow was one of Sharon's favorite traits in him.

"Hey, you're still here?" she heard Andy as he walked into the underground parking garage.

Sharon hummed and walked into his arms. "I was just thinking of you."

"Oh, really?" Andy's smile lit up his face. "Good things, I hope."

"I was thinking of your positivity," Sharon said and leaned a bit more into Andy.

Brow furrowed, Andy held Sharon tighter. "Is everything okay? You look a little sad."

"I'm just a bit overwhelmed. It's been a challenging year, and things are finally working out. I think I just got so used to being stressed about everything all the time that it's difficult to see the good things."

"If planning the wedding on our own is too much, we can afford to hire a wedding planner. Would that take some of the stress off you?"

Sharon sighed, relishing in the warmth of his hands on her back. "Andy, one of the only times that I feel completely carefree is when we're planning our wedding."

"Are you sure?"

Sharon nodded and pressed her lips to his. "I'm sure."

"I love you," Andy said and kissed the crown of her head. "Think happy thoughts, okay?"

Sharon hummed affirmatively. "I'll see you later at work."

Since each of them started the day in a different location, they drove separate cars that morning, which allowed Sharon to think about her interview for the Assistant Chief position later that day. If she was honest, she dreaded it. She didn't want to underperform and risk the chance that Winnie Davis would get the position, but she also didn't want to do well enough to get it herself. Since three of the four candidates for Assistant Chief didn't want the job, Winnie could have better chances than all of them. Winnie's arrogance alone made her the least suitable for the job, in Sharon's opinion. Let alone the fact that she did not know how to share resources with other departments. Sharon knew that she could do the job well, but Major Crimes was her passion. She gave up the idea of a promotion a few years ago; when Chief Taylor made it clear that her age disqualified her for a promotion. Now she no longer felt like she needed a promotion in order for her team to follow her. Ultimately, Chief Taylor was right when he said her rank would not change the situation with Major Crimes, but her leadership skills would. Leading was Sharon's forte, and she decided that focusing on it as one of her proven successes in the interview would be her safest bet.

"You'll be fine," she promised herself when she parked the car in the POB parking lot. Taking a deep breath, she strode towards the building, stretching her spine and squaring her shoulders. Confidence was the name of the game, and even if she couldn't feel it coursing through her veins, Sharon would pretend that she did until she believed her own little lie.

-TBC-