On Christmas Eve, Hank and Layla arrived at the airport at 6:30 PM. Erin's flight was supposed to land at 7:00 PM but Hank wanted to be early.
As they sat in the waiting area, Hank kept jiggling his foot with nervous energy and it caused Layla's chair to shake.
"You are so cute." Layla finally said.
"What?" He asked, innocently.
"You are so excited! It's just cute."
Hank let out a laugh and reached for her hand, holding it in his.
"I'm just ready to see Erin, that's all. Make sure they're treating her alright in New York."
From behind them a husky, female voice said, "They're treating me just fine."
Recognizing Erin's voice, Hank jumped up from his chair and immediately pulled her into a hug.
"It's good to see you, kid." Hank said, not letting go.
"You too, Hank." Erin replied, closing her eyes as they hugged.
Layla stood back and watched the two embrace, a smile on her face.
When the hug ended, Hank gestured to Layla. "Erin, this is Layla."
Layla looked nervously to Hank as Erin walked over to her.
"Hi!" Erin said, her eyes sparkling, "It's nice to meet you, Layla."
Layla was getting ready to stick out her hand for a handshake when Erin pulled her into a hug.
"Anyone who can make this guy smile like he was when I walked up gets a thumbs up in my book."
Layla relaxed a little, Erin's sincerity obvious.
"Well, thanks. It's nice to meet you too, Erin. Really." Layla told her.
Hank picked up Erin's carry on and said, "Alright ladies. It's Christmas Eve. Let's head home."
As they walked to the exit, Layla said, "I hope you're hungry, Erin. I've got a homemade lasagna waiting to go in the oven. It was a Christmas Eve tradition when Cindy and I were growing up."
"That sounds incredible. I've been living off Chinese takeout and pizza for the last two weeks. We've had a big case that's kept me at headquarters constantly."
As Layla walked ahead of them to the car, Erin looked at Hank and raised her eyebrows, a smile on her face.
"What?" Hank asked, curious about her expression.
"Nothing. Just glad to see you happy, that's all."
Hank wrapped an arm around Erin's shoulders, pulling her against his side and squeezing.
"I'm glad you're here, Erin."
Erin gave him a sincere smile and said, "It's good to be home."
-break-
That night, Hank, Erin and Layla sat around the kitchen table, enjoying good food and each other's company.
When Hank stood to get the bottle of wine from the counter, Erin asked, "So, Layla, how'd you end up with the department? Hank tells me your in IT?"
Layla nodded. "I am. I moved back to Chicago from North Carolina this past summer and the job caught my eye. I wanted to work at a place that I could make a difference, not just write code in a dark basement somewhere."
Erin nodded. "Cool. How'd you end up in North Carolina?"
"My husband was stationed there."
Layla took a sip of her wine before adding, "He was killed in action."
Erin cleared her throat. "I'm so sorry."
"Thanks."
Erin's eyes flickered to Hank. She understood their relationship a little better, now.
"Yeah, I stayed there for two years before Cindy encouraged me to come back home. Be around family."
Hank came back to the table and refilled everyone's wine glasses.
Lightening the mood, Layla looked over at Hank and said, "From the day I started with the department, I kept hearing about this renegade Sergeant at Precinct 21 that I needed to avoid."
Erin laughed and Hank smiled, leaning back in his chair and putting his hand on Layla's back.
"He does have a reputation, that's for sure." Erin said and Layla agreed.
"A well-earned reputation." Hank chimed in, standing up for himself, a smirk on his face.
"True, but we both know you're just a big softy." Layla winked at him before leaning over and giving him a quick kiss.
When they separated, Erin lifted her glass, holding it high, and said, "To family. Old and new," she added, looking especially at Layla. Layla nodded at her, her eyes tearing up a little at the kind sentiment.
Hank smiled as they clinked their glasses together. He felt happier than he could have thought possible.
-break-
On Christmas morning, Hank awoke to find himself alone in bed.
Frowning, he sat up and looked around. Layla was nowhere to be seen.
As Hank made his way downstairs, he hesitated, hearing Erin and Layla's voices in the kitchen.
"I'm glad he has you." He heard Erin say.
"Thanks, Erin. I have to admit, I was worried about your reaction."
"Please. You know as well as I do that no day is promised. Be with who you love and if anybody has a problem with it, they can go fuc…"
"Well, I see I've been a great influence on you." Hank said, choosing that moment to walk into the kitchen.
"Ha. Ha." Erin said, dryly, as she put her coffee mug in the sink and headed upstairs to shower.
Layla turned around and leaned against the counter.
"Merry Christmas." She told him, somehow making it sound seductive.
Hank walked over and pulled Layla into his arms.
"Merry Christmas. Why'd you get up so early? I was hoping…" Hank placed a kiss on her neck and Layla sighed, "We could have a little time together this morning?"
"I thought I told you, I have to get to Cindy's early and help her get everything ready."
Hank frowned, remembering.
"Oh yeah."
Layla laughed and stepped back.
"Spend the day with Erin and I will see you at 3:00 PM sharp." Layla reminded him, pointing a finger at him to be sure he heard her.
"Okay, see you at 3."
He pulled her close for a kiss, his hands sliding up her sides, under her shirt. Layla let out a shaky sigh between kisses. "Hank…"
Layla's phone rang and startled them both.
Layla gave him a reprimanding look for distracting her before answering it.
"Hey Cin. What? Calm down. We have some butter here. I'll bring it. Yes, I'm on my way. Okay, love you sis. Bye."
When she hung up, Layla went to the fridge and gathered up all the butter she could find.
"Butter emergency. See you at 3PM."
Layla gave him a quick peck before grabbing her purse and heading out.
When Hank and Erin arrived at the Herrmann's, Chris answered the door.
"Hey! Erin!" He exclaimed, pulling her into a hug.
"Good to see you! Merry Christmas!"
Erin had helped Firehouse 51 on multiple occasions and Chris hadn't forgotten.
"Thanks, Herrmann. You too."
Chris stepped back so they could enter and turned to Hank.
"Hank." Chris extended his hand for a handshake.
"Come on in. The ladies have been hard at work."
Hank, thankful that he and Herrmann wouldn't have a problem, shook his hand.
"Thanks for having us." They both knew he really meant, "Thanks for having me."
As Chris closed the door behind them, he said, "Well, you're pretty much part of the family now and Cindy has instructed me to be on my best behavior."
Hank laughed and followed Chris to the kitchen, Erin having already gone ahead without them.
Layla, looking up from spooning stuffing into a serving dish, made a sound of excitement when she saw Hank and ran over, wrapping her arms around his neck and giving him a kiss.
"Hey you." She smiled and Hank chuckled. She was obviously tipsy.
Cindy walked over a moment later and said, "Sorry, we decided to open the wine a little too early."
She pointed at Layla and Layla scoffed, heading back over to finish what she was doing.
"I'm glad you could come, Hank." Cindy said, hugging him.
"Thanks, Cindy." Hank told her, sincerely.
With the Christmas music playing and everyone in good spirits, Hank found himself feeling a little emotional. That's why he was glad when Chris said, "Hey Hank, want a beer?"
Hank gladly accepted and the two men wandered into the other room with their drinks.
Twenty minutes later, the table was set and Cindy called everyone to dinner. As they sat down and got situated, Cindy said a blessing. Afterwards, she raised her glass and said, "Here's to the first responders that didn't get to have today off. May they make it home safely to their families." Everyone raised their glasses and added their agreement as they toasted.
"Alright. Let's eat!" Chris added and everyone laughed.
Sitting back in her chair, Layla took a moment to look around the table and take it all in. Last year she'd been in another state, alone on Christmas Day. This year she was with Cindy and her family, Hank and Erin. She was happy. She was loved.
Hank looked over and noticed Layla's eyes were filled with tears. He leaned in and whispered, "Hey, you okay?"
She looked up at him and smiled. "I'm more than okay."
When they got home that night, two bags of leftovers in tow, everyone was full and happy.
It wasn't long before Erin said, "Alright. I'm going on up to bed. Those kiddos wore me out and I am so full I don't think I'll make it up the stairs if I don't go now."
Layla laughed. "Yeah, they'll do that to you. Goodnight, Erin."
Hank walked over and gave her a hug, "'Night, Erin."
After Erin headed up, Layla poured them each a glass of scotch and they went to sit in the living room in front of the tree.
They sat like that, Hank holding her in his arms, until he leaned down and whispered, "Are you ready to open your presents?"
Layla smiled and her eyes got wide. "I thought you'd never ask."
Hank laughed as he stood up and walked over to the tree, reaching down to pick up two small packages from under it.
Layla went in the other room and came back with two packages for him, as well.
"You go first." She told him, thrusting a present into his hands. It turned out to be a really old, really expensive bottle of scotch.
Hank looked up at her appreciatively.
"Chris helped me find it. I think he was kind of jealous that he didn't get one, too."
Hank laughed and kissed her. "Thank you."
"Now open the next one!" She said, excitedly.
Hank opened the small package to find a print-out inside. It was a description of a cabin on Sinissippi Lake. He looked up at her, surprised.
"How do you feel about four days lakeside, in that cabin… away from the city… alone…"
Hank pulled her against him and kissed her softly.
"I think that sounds like heaven."
Layla smiled, glad he was happy. "I've already booked it for the week of Valentine's Day. Trudy even put in a vacation request for you. She said it'd been so long since you'd requested vacation time that you'd probably forgotten how."
Hank laughed and said, "She's right."
Hank kissed her again before handing her a small, wrapped gift.
"Your turn."
Layla tore off the wrapping paper to find a black, velvet jewelry box underneath.
Opening it, Layla gasped when she saw a beautiful pair of stud earrings. The center stone was a green, round-cut emerald. Each stone was surrounded by diamonds.
"Hank, these are beautiful."
"You like them? I picked them out myself."
Layla looked up at him and smiled, imagining how out of place he must have looked.
"They made me think of that green dress you wore to the mayor's party."
"Oh yeah?" Layla asked, remembering fondly what happened after that dress had come off.
"Yeah. I won't forget that dress as long as I live."
Layla laughed and kissed him.
"I love them. Thank you."
Hank handed her the other gift. She opened it, pulling out four pieces of paper and studying them. Once she realized what they were, she squealed and started bouncing from foot to foot.
"Eric Clapton tickets! How did you get these? The Chicago show sold out in like 10 seconds!"
Layla was nearly jumping up and down and Hank couldn't help but laugh at her.
"I called in a favor." Was all Hank said and Layla wrapped her arms around his neck.
"I love my presents. And I love you. This has been a great Christmas."
Hank looked down at her, a serious expression on his face, and said, "I love you too."