A/N: I apologize for taking such a long time to continue this story but life has caught up with me. The spelling or grammar mistakes you may find, are mine only and if you point them out I'll gladly fix them.
On another note I want to thank once again my Dear Xiratania, for being a constant source of inspiration and support.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
Love and bullets: Chapter 2
The ride home besides short was quiet but despite the fact that they didn't pronounce a word, both of them felt as if there was not much to be said. For a few hours they had shared the wounds, they'd shared injuries that were not meant to be shown but were exposed, and Flynn complied with his need of grieving and sharing the load sorrow had taken upon this woman he cared so much for.
Andy parked the car and looked at Sharon wondering if she was strong enough to get to her home, but as if reading his thoughts she turned to face him.
"I'm alright now lieutenant. Thank you so much for everything" her voice quiver before she continued "You have no idea what it meant for me that you of all people were there accompanying me"
Without even understanding why, she placed her hands on top of his and caressed them with tenderness. He felt as his heart began beating faster and grabbed her gently. He stared at her as if trying to actually look beyond those tired beautiful green orbs fixed on him " I'm glad I was there. I'm glad you allowed me to be there for you".
Trembling and not sure why she was suddenly so nervous, Sharon felt she was stepping beyond the boundaries of just camaraderie and couldn't suppress an awkward smile while she took her hands back and opened the door to her car.
After stepping out of it she realized he had left his car at the crime scene. " I guess we planned this poorly". She said.
Walking towards her, he grinned and touched her back encouraging her to walk " if you don't mind Captain I'll walk you to your place and call a cab".
She didn't find a reason to refuse his suggestion, but the nearness this man was inflicting on her was unsettling.
When she opened the door she found a waking Rusty in the couch. "Sharon you're home. Oh, hi lieutenant Flynn."
His eyes rolled from her to Andy. The puzzled look on his face made Sharon a bit uncomfortable but she tried to hide it, looking at him with her best inquiring glare. Noticing the maneuver, Rusty rolled his eyes.
"You said you'd call me when you'd get to the crime scene and you never did so" making a long pause out of disbelieve he was going to have to say it out loud, he finished his thought. "I was worried ok?!"
Sharon couldn't help but smile at him and feel love for Rusty. Suddenly all the memories of the past few hours caught up with her and tears were forming again before she could suppress them.
"Sharon what's wrong?" Rusty felt worried about the sudden change in her. Had he said something?
"Nothing, I'm ok. You can call your cab now lieutenant, I'll go make myself a cup of tea" and fixing her jacket she rushed to the kitchen while drying the tear slipping out of her right eye.
Rusty was looking at Flynn now, and his eyes clearly demanded an answer.
"The Captain had a rough night. Our case involves someone she knew and she's emotionally and physically exhausted, I guess. Probably she just needs to rest and for that matter, so do you kid". He said in a whisper.
Rusty tried to hide the yawn but it was obviously seen by Flynn so he decided to give Sharon her space and go to bed. "Now that your home I should probably go to sleep. 'Night lieutenant. 'Night Sharon" And with a bizarre look he disappeared behind the door to his bedroom.
Andy called the taxi while Sharon opened her fridge. "The cab should be here in about 15 minutes"
As he walked to the kitchen counter she turned around taking another zip of her wine and arching her eyebrows with a guilty expression. "It didn't feel like a cup of tea sort of night"
He kindly smiled at her as he close the distance between them. She lowered the glass and placed it by the table in order to regain composure or maybe just to feel like she could control him if the case required it.
As he got nearer her pulse became agitated and although she knew she needed to step back, she couldn't move.
All those moments she had been sharing with him in the last months had been pleasant. She had enjoyed their closeness. But lately she found herself admiring how good his clothes fitted. How appealing his scent was and how it weakened her the truthful and expressive manner he gaze at her.
He kept approaching and she knew she needed to back off. She wanted to move, quickly, scape while she still could, but didn't.
Andy stood right in front of her, only two inches apart. "I'm so sorry Sharon". Before she could even articulate a word, his lips where tenderly touching hers, sensing how they trembled as he gained confidence and pressed a littler.
Sharon kept her eyes close as if this would allow her to conceal the turmoil of emotions coming through her. She was surprised but felt every fiber of her being give in to his kiss. Her heart was about to come out of her mouth and the heat her body was emanating made this moment incredibly surreal but when her knees felt week and started bending she felt as if being pulled from a dream.
Opening her eyes she walked away from him to the other side of the kitchen. She started waving her hands and shaking her head to prevent him from following her, or maybe she was actually doing it to shake all these feelings away from her.
Flynn suddenly felt a bit awkward, as he watched Sharon's gaze on him. He could tell she was trying to figure out what to say. He looked into Sharon's eyes identifying that 'pull yourself together lieutenant' expression that she sometimes got.
Sharon tried her best to sound unwavering. "I want to start off by saying thank you, for all the support and commitment you showed tonight Lieutenant. I am aware I may have become carried away and emotionally compromised after we notified Sam's parents." Sharon's voice quivered as the memory rushed back. She paused, taking a deep breath in order to appear calm.
He was suddenly compelled to be near her so he stepped a little closer yet giving her enough space so she wouldn't feel anxious. He could tell she didn't notice when she continued.
"I can admit my frustration and open display of emotions might have put you in a position where you might have felt forced to comfort me. I sincerely apologize, and I assure you it won't happen again." An unconvinced look from across the room told her she needed to connect again somehow so she got closer to him and placed a hand on top of his shoulder.
"Look, I've always believed that is really hard being close to people you work with but I find that good relationships sometimes depend on what you're willing to overlook. So lets forget this little incident ever happen and I'll do my best to behave accordingly to our ranks and positions as well. " She managed to say, believing that she had the topic covered.
Andy didn't try to hide his disagreement. "First of all Captain, you can always rely on the fact that as a member of your team, I will show the utmost commitment to the task in hand, whether it is catching the killer, bullying him into confession, or even pulling some pranks on Provenza to get him in the right mood. However I can respectfully say, the rest of your speech is plain old bull crap ma'am."
The disbelief in Sharon's eyes was obvious and slowly turning into an irritated stare, but before she could articulate a word, he continued.
"I decided to accompany you because I knew you might require assistance, but foremost I wanted to be there for that moment when you let you guard down and the real Sharon appeared. Tonight I saw you giving people you care about the worst news they're gonna get, and you stoically held your ground, hugged them, assured them the responsible party will be brought to justice. You managed to keep your mask up. Only after the fact when you are leaving, you actually dared to show what you were feeling. We shared a moment, one that I'm grateful for and now you are trying to pull the, 'I'm a rule follower and objective leader' crap." Sharon felt her cheeks burning up and tried not to close her eyes because then the tears forming would fall.
Andy saw the hurt in her eyes and took on a softer tone. "I did not feel forced to comfort you, I wanted to. I needed to. Don't you get it? This thing we do for a living is hard. Everyday, glancing at the darker side of us all, and I'm sorry Captain, but the way I deal with this is by remembering what some folks say... 'Life's a bitch and then you die'! So stop wasting time excusing yourself for feeling or showing emotions."
Flynn couldn't see Sharon's hand move to his head, he was distracted by the tears beginning to fall. He could only see her eyes fixed on him with a wounded expression.
Perhaps his attempt at comedy failed, but when she softly ran her hands through his hair, he dryly stopped talking and was immediately caught by the torrent of feelings the touch generated. Sharon slowly closed the gap between them, stopping her silent waltz when her nose was an inch away from his. She could tell he was puzzled, but something inside her, needed this man. Something inside her needed to feel him close again, as if to allow him to caress her soul.
She arched her eyebrows, silently begging him to reach out for her, and Andy was happy to oblige. He lightly grabbed her by the back of her neck, softly stroking her nape, before finally touching his lips to hers. Flynn allowed himself to taste and delight at the softness of her lips again, while an almost inaudible hum escaped her throat. This kiss was different than the previous one. There was no insecurity. This one was filled with sincerity from both of them. Was filled of disregard for anything besides the two of them and the way their bodies seem to attack each other in a magnetic spell.
The phone rang. She opened her eyes to find enchanting brown orbs mesmerized. "That'll be my cab" he said without disengaging her gaze and while taking out his phone "I'll be right down"
They suddenly drift apart when they heard Rusty coming out of his room.
"Well Captain, it's almost 3 am, and we have a lot of work ahead of us. See you tomorrow. I'll show myself out."
Sharon's eyes followed his every move feeling like she was discovering a new person in this man. While she attentively watched Flynn's exit, she did not notice Rusty's eyes were on her. Only after she heard Andy's footsteps get close to the front door did she notice Rusty's inquisitive stare. She tried to avoid any unwanted questioning by yawning.
He incredulously looked at her and decided to let it go, and asked what actually preoccupied him. "Are you really okay? Like really Sharon? Lieutenant Flynn said you knew the victim."
Sharon sipped the remains of her wine and smiled at the boy. Andy's words about allowing herself to express her feelings were still rumbling in her head, maybe he was right.
"Yes, I had known her since she was 4 years old. She was Laura's best friend."
All the thoughts she had had bottled up unexpectedly were threatening to come out, and she'd let them.
"She was a lovely, beautiful girl. " She started to sob and Rusty's hand came to rest with hers.
"We are going to get whoever did this, but that won't bring little Sammie back. And her parents won't see her get married, or get her grad degree, my Laura won't have her friend to hold, or cry on anymore." All of these flowed through her head in one swift motion. She took a deep breath adding, "As much as it frustrates me and makes me want to scream, there is so little we can do. It's like what some folks say, 'life's a bitch and then you die'. So we just have to try to keep ourselves safe, and enjoy every moment with one another."
She did not outwardly smile but she could feel a little bit of the sadness lift at repeating Andy's creative choice in words.
Rusty hugged Sharon and she comfortably rested her head on his shoulder. Sharon dried her tears realizing how exhausted she truly felt. After the embrace Rusty accompanied her to her bedroom and wished her good night. He gave her a smile as he walked away. He hoped it conveyed everything he felt for her. It did. Sharon lied back resting her head in the pillow, then she heard Rusty ask, "Hey Sharon, who are those folks who are sharing their street wisdom with you?". Sharon closed her eyes and smiled to herself remembering the provenance of her newfound knowledge.