Chapter 4

Molly's

Antonio held out his hand to help Kat out of the car, and Kat gladly took it. She felt a spark when her fingers touched his, and she immediately looked into his eyes to see if he felt it to. She was happy to see his eyes darkened , indicating he had.

"This place is cute!" she announced , as they walked up to the front door.

Cute wasn't what he would call it. The place had a stubborn charm. Otis, Herrmann and Gabby had bought the place years back and immediately got in over their heads. But their friends pitched in and made Molly's what it was today, a great neighborhood place for the hard working firefighters, cops and doctors of Chicago to socialize at.

"You know, we don't have to go in. We could go some place quiet, maybe talk?" Antonio was grasping. He knew she wouldn't turn down the invitation that was given to her, she was too nice.

Kat smiled at him and leaned in close, whispering in his ear. "I need a drink." She opened the door and headed in.

He just laughed to himself and followed her inside. It was packed, and he could tell she felt out of place. That was until they heard a loud yell from by the bar.

"Kat! You made it!!" A tall red haired man walked up to her and wrapped his arms around her. "I'm so glad you came!" When he pulled away he saw Antonio standing next to her. "Hey Antonio! Haven't seen you in awhile how have you been?" he offered the man his hand.

"Hey Doc. Can't complain."

Kat smiled "Hi Doctor Halstead. Thank you for inviting me, this place is great!"

"I think we are on a first name basis. Call me Will. Come on, I'll get you a drink!"

"Hey Kat! Whatcha drinking ?" The silver haired bartender asked.

"Hey Christopher! Scotch please." She looked back at Antonio "And a beer?"

"Girl after my own heart." Christopher said aloud and Kat grinned.

Will turned to them "Kat I want you to meet my fiancée. Natalie this is Katherin Bend, she came in to the ER the other day. Kat, my fiancée Natalie Manning." The two women shook hands.

"Nice to meet you finally Will has NOT stopped talking about you. I was starting to get jealous." She winked at Kat and nudged Will.

"Oh stop it. It's rare we run into a friend of Erins, so I was excited. She was practically family you know." Will handed her the scotch and Antonio the beer. "In fact you should totally come to the wedding!"

Kat laughed "You do NOT mean that. You barely know me!"

Nat spoke up "No really! Come with Jay, he RSVP'D with no plus one. Antonio you should come too! "

"Thanks. Sounds like fun." He took a pull from the beer bottle Will had handed him. He stole a glance at Kat and she had a smile on her face, enjoying the company. It seemed she was popular with everyone, which was a nice thing to see.

"Shots!" Nat handed Kat a glass "You in?"

"Um… sure!" she stopped second guessing being there and decided to enjoy herself. They downed the shot and she wrinkled her nose , chasing it with her drink.

The night progressed with several dozen hugs, many conversations and multiple shots being consumed. Antonio kept a close eye on her , ready to jump in if need be, but she was having fun. After a few hours and quite a few shots in her, he saw her approaching. She had a huge smile on her face, and two shot glasses in her hands.

"Kat… you feeling okay?"

She gave him a sly smile. "Very. You are probably the only one that hasn't done a shot with me. You game?" she handed him one of the glasses.

"Sure." They clinked the glasses and each downed theirs. She had stopped feeling the alcohol a while back, it wasn't phasing her anymore. All of a sudden she squealed as someone picked her up from behind and twirled her around. When she turned she saw who it was. The alcohol had made her less formal, so everyone was being called by their first names.

"Kelly! You trying to make me throw up?" she smacked him playfully on the shoulder.

"Naw, but you looked too perfect standing there , I had to do it!" he grabbed another shot glass off the bar and handed it to her, which she immediately downed.

"You want to talk about someone perfect looking… let's talk about your girlfriend. Stella looks amazing! Did I hear her right, there's going to be karaoke later?"

"Yup! And you get first crack, being the guest of honor." He grinned at her and wandered off to get another drink.

Antonio kept count in his head. She was on shot 8, which for any normal person would probably have knocked them out. But this girl? Was acting like it was nothing. She had long since retired the glass of scotch , opting for water in between the shots she was taking . Antonio knew if he didn't cut her off soon she would be waking up with a hell of a hangover. He intended on getting her to come with him outside when a slow song came on the jukebox, and he smiled at himself at the good luck. He was about to ask her to dance when Jay walked up.

"Antonio. " Jay nodded at him, and he nodded back.

"Kat, would you like to dance?" he held his hand out to her. She blushed and nodded, following Jay to the center of the room.

Antonio took a seat at the bar, trying not to be obvious but keeping an eye on them.

On the dance floor Kat wrapped her arms around Jays neck, while he placed his on her hips. The material of her dress bunched in his fingers, as he pulled her close. "You having a good time?"

"Oh gosh yes, I'm so glad Will invited me! Speaking of invites… He also invited me to his and Nats wedding in a few weeks." She giggled "I think they're just bring polite. Actually everyone is being really sweet. I like it here. " She could feel herself rambling a bit, but she was intimidated by him for some reason.

He stared at her intensely . "You should definitely come to the wedding. Be my date?" he formed it as a question, but it sounded more like a statement.

"Sure, that would be really nice." She smiled at him.

He leaned closer to her, taking a deep breath in. "You smell delicious." He laughed "Like… cookies…."

Kat grinned at him and laughed. "Pie actually. I made one for the firehouse. Intelligence is up next, as soon as I can get back to my shop I'll make you guys a bunch of goodies."

The song ended and they broke apart. Jay grabbed Kats hand and kissed her knuckles. "Thanks for the dance. Now if you would kindly tell Tonio over there to stop giving me the evil eye, I would appreciate it."

She turned towards the bar and saw Antonio try and avoid being caught staring. She turned back to Jay and raised up on her tip toes, giving him a kiss on the cheek , whispering in his ear. "I'm sorry, Hank told him to watch me I think he's taking it a tad too serious.

He laughed and leaned down to whisper in hers "No, he is head over heels for you and is insanely jealous of all these people who are spending time with you." He winked at her when he pulled away and walked off.

Kat stood shocked at that comment. She shook her head, there's no way Jay was right. Everyone was super friendly to her, she figured because of Hank. Or maybe because they're just really friendly people… but to like her? She dismissed the thought and wove her way through people back to the bar. This time Otis was the one taking drink orders.

"Kat, what can I get you?"

She shook her head. "I'm good thanks Otis. By the way I made you guys something, think it'll be okay if I stop by tomorrow to deliver it?"

"Uh , YES. That shouldn't even be a question! Hey Lieutenants!" he waved Kelly and Matt over to the bar. "Kat wants to stop by tomorrow, she's delivering treats!"

"We will never say no to home made desserts, especially not when they are coming from you." Matt flashed her a grin.

"Tell me it's the cookies again." Kelly held his hands together symbolizing a prayer.

"Nope. This time you get pie!" she laughed when all three men pumped their fists in the air.

She felt a hand on her arm, and spun around to come face to face with Antonio. "Can we go outside for a minute?" He asked, and she nodded. He held out his hand, which she gladly took and he lead her outside.

She took a deep breath in. The air had a slight chill to it , which was surprising after the scorcher of a day it had been. Antonio noticed her slight shiver and immediately wrapped his jacket around her shoulders.

"Thanks." She smiled shyly at him. "What's up?"

He wasn't sure how to approach the subject. Actually he didn't want to talk at all, he wanted to grab her and kiss her, but she had drank a lot and he didn't want to push anything. "Did I tell you that you look amazing?" he stepped into her personal space, gauging whether she was okay with him being that close.

She blushed , biting her lip . "Thanks…"

That action was what did it for him. He leaned down and captured her mouth with his, taking his time. When they broke apart both were out of breath.

"Detective…"

"I think you can call me Antonio." He flashed a smile at her and leaned down to kiss her again when he saw a glimpse of a car slowly making it's way closer to them. He saw the gun out the window too late, and heard the pop of a gunshot.