For those of you who saw the update and were confused, I accidentally updated this story with the last chapter of 'miracle'. Thanks for the people who send me a message letting me know I updated the wrong thing.

Sorry for the mix up, but this is the right chapter!

XX

Andy took a sip of her coffee and looked at her father. ''You look really good,'' she told him. ''That trip was good for you, wasn't it?'' They were in Tommy's kitchen. Andy was sitting at the counter with Tommy standing next to her.

Tommy nodded and cut a piece of cake for Andy. He handed her the small plate. ''It was nice to be away for a few weeks,'' he answered. ''I felt bad for leaving you when you just got back though.''

''That's okay dad,'' Andy promised. ''You didn't know when I would get back. Neither did I. At least you were there on the night I got home. I really missed you.''

''I missed you too sweetheart.'' Tommy gave Andy a small smile and took a bite of his cake. ''How's work going?'' he asked. ''Who are you partnered with now?''

''Don't really have a steady partner,'' Andy admitted. The smile fell off her face and she looked at the floor. ''Just riding with everybody for a while.''

Tommy hadn't always been a perfect father, but he knew when something was wrong with his little girl. ''What's wrong Andy?'' he asked. ''Did something happen at work?'' He knew all about the horrible things that could happen in his daughter's line of work.

''No. It's nothing. I'm fine,'' Andy rambled. The last thing she wanted was for her father to know more about her disastrous love life. It was already bad enough when she had to explain to him why her wedding was off. Or when she had to tell him about her suspension after sleeping with a senior officer. Her argument with Nick wasn't something her father needed to know about.

She wanted nothing more than for her father to be proud of her. Somehow she felt like her actions weren't exactly worthy of that feeling. Leaving him behind for six months wasn't something she was proud of either. He didn't have a lot of people. And she just took off without telling him.

''You know you can tell me anything, right?'' Tommy asked. His eyes found hers and the love she found there made her want to crawl into him like she was four years old again.

Andy slowly nodded and gripped her coffee cup a little tighter. ''I just made some mistakes,'' she admitted. ''But everything will be okay. I'm happy, I promise.''

For a moment Tommy looked like he didn't believe her, but then he gave her a small smile. ''You know you can always come and find me, right? Whatever you need.''

''I know dad,'' Andy said. ''You've been really great and supportive.'' Andy nervously looked around and took a deep breath. ''There actually is something that I want to talk to you about.''

Andy waited for a moment, but when Tommy just looked at her she continued. ''I'm seeing Sam again,'' she said. When Tommy opened his mouth she put her hand up to silence him. ''I know what you want to say, but it's really different this time.''

''Andy,'' Tommy said as he shook his head. ''Do you remember what he did to you? He sent you straight into that undercover operation.''

''That's not true,'' Andy protested. ''I made the decision to go.''

A stare off followed for a few seconds. Andy was the one to turn her gaze away at first. She let out a deep breath. ''Dad, I'm happy with him. He makes me happy.''

''He broke your heart,'' Tommy argued. ''You spent a night on my couch crying your eyes out. You were out of it for weeks. And then you disappeared.''

''His best friend died,'' Andy defended Sam's actions. ''He was mourning and things were just messed up.''

''You think nothing bad will ever happen again?'' Tommy asked calmly. ''What if something else happens and he'll pull the same stunt?''

''He won't,'' Andy answered, surprised with how much she believed what she was saying. ''I know you're not his biggest fan at the moment, but can you please trust me on this one? I love him dad. I really do. And he loves me too.''

''He's got a funny way of showing that.'' Tommy folded his arms in front of his chest. He threw his coffee in the sink and frowned. ''He's a grown up Andy. He can't just run away whenever things get hard.''

Andy closed her eyes for a few seconds. ''Dad.. I get where you're coming from, I do. I know you just want to protect me, but it's not going to change my mind.''

Tommy was silent for another minute and then stepped away from the counter. ''I know I haven't been a perfect father. I know I don't get a say in this.''

''Your opinion matters,'' Andy interrupted him. ''It won't change anything, but I really want you two to get along.''

All Tommy did was nod. He gave Andy a serious look and turned his gaze away after a few seconds. ''You tell him that I still know how my gun works, for if he ever tries to hurt you again.''

''He won't,'' Andy said. ''We talked about things and we're taking things slow. Both of us really want to make things work this time.''

Tommy took a step forward again and placed both of his hands on Andy's shoulders. ''Are you really happy?'' he asked as he bended his knees a little so he could look her in the eye.

Andy smiled and gave a small nod. ''I am.''

''Then I guess I'll have you two over for dinner sometime soon.''

XX

''So, you and Swarek doing it again?'' Gail asked bluntly as she and Andy were cruising the streets. ''He looks happy.''

Andy nearly spit the sip of coffee she just took out again. She turned around in her seat and looked at Gail. Gail didn't look in her direction though. She was chewing her gum and looked bored. ''I'm sorry?'' Andy said. ''What makes you think that?''

''Come on,'' Gail laughed. ''The two of you keep giving each other long stares. And Nick is shooting daggers at him all the time. Doesn't take a brain surgeon to figure a few things out.''

Andy bit her bottom lip and looked out of the window. ''That obvious, huh?'' she softly asked.

''Kinda,'' Gail answered. Her tone softened a little. ''Didn't I warn you this would happen?''

Immediately Andy closed her eyes. Because it was the truth. Gail had warned her that Nick would get hurt. ''I know,'' she said. ''I thought you were wrong, but it turns out that you were right.''

''Of course I was,'' Gail said. ''Why do you sound so surprised about that?''

''I really messed up, haven't I?'' Andy asked. ''I dragged him into all of this and now he can't even look me in the eye.''

Gail shrugged and stopped for a red light. ''He's to blame as well. He can deny it all he wants, but he knew you still had feelings for Swarek. He was just arrogant enough to believe that he could make those feelings disappear.''

Things stayed quiet in the cruiser until the light turned green again. ''I thought he could too,'' Andy admitted. ''But I guess I was wrong.''

''He'll get over it,'' Gail promised. ''I mean, he got over me, right?''

Andy laughed and shook her head. ''You really have no issues with your self confidence, do you?''

''Why would I?'' Gail wondered. ''I've got a good job, I've got a nice girlfriend. Things are good.''

''How is Holly doing?'' Andy asked. She felt bad for being so self-absorbed in her own little world. Over the last few weeks she had spent little time with Gail. Most of her free time went to Sam or Traci.

At the mention of Holly's name Gail smiled. ''She's good. All though I'm bringing her to my parents next week, so let's see if she'll stick around after that.''

''Have you told your parents about her yet?''

''I told my mom that I was seeing someone. She grilled me on what kind of job he had, what kind of family he was from.. I gently informed her that he is actually a she.''

''How did she take it?'' Andy asked. She knew that Elaine Peck wasn't the easiest person in the world. She could only imagine how hard it must have been for Gail to come out to her mother.

''Surprisingly well,'' Gail answered. ''Of course it helped that I told her that she has a good job and that her father had a high rank in the military.''

''I'm sure that helped,'' Andy agreed. ''She never was very fond of Chris or Nick, was she?''

A chuckle escaped Gail's mouth as she shook her head. ''Not really, no.'' Gail took her coffee cup and took a long sip. ''You told your dad about Sam yet?''

''I did,'' Andy told her. ''Went over to his house yesterday. He wasn't too happy, but I think he'll be civil when he sees him. At least I hope so. He always respected him a lot, but he's not too happy with him now.''

''He's your dad. He's supposed to dislike the people that you sleep with.''

''Well, then I guess he should love Sam.'' The words were out of her mouth before she even realised it. Their sex life wasn't really anyone's business, but Andy couldn't really help but feel a little frustrated because of the lack of it.

Of course, the whole thing was her idea to begin with. But it had been a few weeks and she was sort of done with it. Especially since they had slept in the same bed again. Andy often found herself daydreaming about how good it would be to just give into temptation.

Gail laughed out loud and looked at Andy. ''No way?'' she asked. ''You guys haven't done it yet?''

Andy groaned and closed her eyes. ''It was my idea, okay? I had this stupid idea where I thought that we should wait until we worked some stuff out.''

''Swarek must have been happy about that.'' Gail laughed again and shook her head. ''And since when are you a fan of celibacy?''

''Believe me, I'm not a fan.'' Andy shook her head. At first the whole not sleeping together thing seemed like a good idea, but it got old soon. She was more than ready to throw the whole idea out of the window.

''So what are you waiting for?'' Gail asked. ''It's not like it's unfamiliar territory.''

Since she already told Gail this much, Andy figured she could use some advice. While normally Traci was the one she turned to for advice, on this subject Gail might actually have the upper hand. ''It's just.. I told him that I wanted to wait. So every time anything happens, he backs off. I mean, it's really sweet that he's being so respectful, but he doesn't take the hint that I'm done with waiting.''

''He's a guy,'' Gail argued. ''If you give him a hint you have to make sure it's clear as day.''

''How do I do that?'' Andy asked.

''You could just tell him,'' Gail said. ''He's a guy. He'll probably be in the bedroom before you finish your sentence. Stop making everything so difficult. It's just sex. It's supposed to be fun.''

Andy sighed and turned to look out of the window. She knew she could just tell Sam that she was done waiting, but the romantic inside of her wanted him to just make the first move. But she knew Sam well enough to know that he wouldn't make that move unless he was 100% sure that she was more than ready.

''Okay,'' Gail said after a moment. ''Just make it clear to him that you are ready. Buy some sexy lingerie and show it off to him. He's a guy, but he isn't an idiot. He'll take the hint.''

Before Andy could respond the radio cracked to life. Dispatch informed them that someone found a body in the park. They were close to the location so Andy flicked on the sirens while Gail picked up some speed.

The rest of the day was filled with research and paperwork. Before Andy knew it she was walking towards her apartment. When she walked by a lingerie store she stopped for a second.

Normally she wasn't really the type for sexy lingerie. Her underwear drawer was mostly filled with simple and functional underwear. Sam never really seemed to mind, so Andy doubted that this was the way to go.

Gail was right though, Sam was a guy and he probably needed more than little hints to get what she was after. Part of her thought that she should just tell him that she was done waiting, but another part of her really wanted things to just happen.

They had already talked so much over the last few weeks. And she really was happy about that. She wanted to get to know every aspect of Sam and was so glad that he was opening up.

Talking made things difficult though and sex was the only aspect of them that had always been simple. Ever since the first night they spent together that was the thing that they shared together without holding back.

She really didn't want to complicate sex as well.

After doubting for another few moments Andy opened the door to the store and stepped in. She looked around for a while when a sales manager asked her if she could help her.

''Just looking,'' Andy answered. ''Not sure what I want yet.''

''Anything I can help you with?'' the young lady asked her.

''No thank you. I just want to look around.'' Andy continued to look through the store. After a while her eye landed on a black lace teddy. It was simple, but had a low neckline making the thing just a little bit more sexy.

She knew she would be a lot more comfortable in that than wearing some pink babydoll. That just wasn't her. Sam always preferred black on her as well.

Ten minutes later Andy walked out of the store with a bag in her hand. A small smile played on her face as she thought about what tonight would bring her.

It was ridiculous to be nervous, but she couldn't help but feel a few flutters in her stomach. It had been almost a year since the break up. She had missed Sam as her friend, as her mentor, but she would lie if she would say she didn't miss the physical aspect of him as well.

When she reached her apartment she quickly checked her messages. Sam had left a message saying that he would be there within an hour. He had a few things to take care of before he was free to leave the barn.

Exactly fifty five minutes later there was a knock to her door. Andy quickly grabbed her coat and purse and then opened the door.

''Wow,'' Sam said when she opened the door. ''You look.. wow.''

She was wearing a black dress that reached the middle of her thighs. The dress showed off every curve of her body, but was classy at the same time. She wore her hair down and was wearing a simple silver necklace with stud earrings.

''Thanks,'' Andy said. She softly kissed Sam and ran her hand over the material of his shirt. ''You look really handsome. Should make you dress up more often.''

''Thought it was my idea to go to that restaurant,'' Sam argued. ''I was fully aware what wardrobe that would ask for.''

''You knew I wanted to go,'' Andy said.

''I might've seen you check the menu once or twice,'' Sam admitted.

''I would've been fine with something simple too, you know that right?'' Andy asked. ''I know this isn't really your kind of thing.''

''Hey, if you're wearing something like that you won't ever hear me complain. Besides, I like making you happy.''

A grin spread on Andy's face as she took his hand. They didn't let go until they reached the truck. Sam helped her in and then rounded the truck to get to the driver's side. He quickly jumped in too and drove towards their destination.

''Already know what you're having?'' Sam guessed.

''Have some ideas,'' Andy confirmed. ''The special's might change my mind though. And I already know that dessert will be the best part of the meal.''

''What is so good about that dessert?'' Sam wondered. He never really understood Andy's obsession with dessert. He didn't care too much for chocolate or other sugary things. Andy could eat an entire carton of ice cream though.

''Just wait and see,'' Andy said. ''Just so you know, we're ordering different things and we're splitting, because I can't make a decision.''

Sam looked at her for a second and nodded. ''Whatever you want McNally.''

XX

Three hours later they walked into Andy's apartment again. ''Best dinner ever, right?'' Andy asked when she threw her purse on the couch. ''I'm stuffed.''

''Was good,'' Sam agreed. ''Too bad I only had two bites of dessert.''

''Shut up,'' Andy said. ''I asked you if you wanted more, but you said that I could have it. You don't even like white chocolate anyway.''

Sam pulled on her arm until they were nose to nose. ''You're right,'' he said. ''Probably was distracted with all those noises you were making while eating it.''

Andy slapped his chest and quickly kissed his cheek. ''Love you for letting me have your piece though. Like I already predicted, it was the best dessert ever.''

''Glad you enjoyed it,'' Sam answered. He took a step closer to Andy and nudged her nose with his. Their lips met in a soft kiss. When the kiss deepened Sam put his hand on Andy's back pulling her even closer.

Andy drowned in the kiss for a moment. She ran her hand through Sam's hair and kissed him back with just as much passion as he was giving her.

When Sam broke the kiss he ran his hand over Andy's arm. ''How about a movie or something?''

Andy bit her bottom lip and nodded. ''How about you make yourself comfortable?'' she asked. ''I'll be back in a second.'' Without looking back she disappeared into her bedroom.

She grabbed the bag she had thrown on her bed hours before. Quickly she changed into the piece of clothing. She looked in the mirror and played with her hair for a moment.

After a while she decided that her hair probably looked best when it was down. She quickly pulled on the highest heels she owned. Even she had to admit that she looked okay. She took a deep breath and walked towards her door. She took the doorknob in her hand and then stepped outside.

''Where did you put your DVD's?'' Sam asked. ''They're not in your..'' Then he turned around and saw what Andy was wearing. His mouth hanged open and Andy could see him swallow.

''I thought maybe we should skip that movie?'' Andy asked. ''Unless you really want to watch of course?'' she tried to use her most seductive voice.

Sam shook his head and took a step forward. ''Not necessarily,'' he said. He walked towards her until he was just a few inches away. He put his hand on her neck and ran his thumb over her lips.

''You like it?'' Andy asked.

All Sam did was nod as he took her in. ''I definitely like it,'' he confirmed.

Andy had enough of the staring and slowly leaned in so he would kiss her. Sam got the hint and met her lips in the middle. He slowly ran his tongue over her bottom lip, asking for access.

She gladly gave him that access. When the need for air became too big after a while they broke apart, both breathing heavily. Andy began to unbutton Sam's shirt. She smiled at him and pushed the material off of him when all the buttons were undone.

''You sure?'' Sam asked.

''Absolutely,'' Andy softly answered. She attached her lips to his again. His hands found her rear and he slowly pushed her up. Andy got his intention and gladly wrapped her legs around his waist. ''Bedroom,'' she murmured when he didn't move.

Sam took the few steps it took to get to her bedroom. As soon as he felt the bed hit his knees he lowered Andy gently. She shifted on the bed a little until she was lying with her head on the pillows. It didn't take Sam long to join her there.

He moved his mouth to her neck and softly sucked on her pulse point. Andy let out a low moan and turned her head to give him more access.

Sam pushed himself up on his elbows and just hovered above her for a moment. ''Just so you know McNally,'' he said with a low voice. ''You can have my dessert anytime.''

''Shut up,'' Andy smiled as she pulled him back on top of her.

XX

''Wow,'' Andy repeated Sam's words from earlier that evening as she laid on her side facing him. ''This might've topped dessert.'' Their legs were entangled, just like their fingers. Their heartbeats were slowly beginning to return to normal.

''Agreed,'' Sam said. He kissed Andy's bare shoulder and rolled back on top of her. ''No regrets?''

''You were there, right?'' Andy questioned. ''Did it sound like I had any regrets?''

Sam grinned and shook his head. ''Not really.'' He kissed her one last time before rolling onto his back. He pulled her with him until she was sprawled out on his chest.

Andy sighed contently. ''I like this,'' she whispered.

''Me too.'' Sam traced patterns on her back with his right hand while his left hand was tangled in her hair. ''What made you change your mind?'' he wondered. ''Not that I'm complaining.''

''Didn't really change my mind,'' Andy argued. ''I said I needed some time and you gave me that.'' She replaced her head on Sam's chest so she could feel his heartbeat. ''Just didn't really know what I was waiting for anymore,'' she admitted. ''I mean, I feel safe with you. I love you. Don't want to waste anymore time.''

Sam kissed the top of her head. ''I love you.''

''I know.''

XX

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