Author's Note: As always, thank you for the reviews on the last chapter. I am so thrilled with the response and, to be honest, it's pretty overwhelming. The material this story deals with is tough and I really appreciate the encouragement and support I've received. Thank you so much!

Disclaimer: I do not own Rookie Blue.

"So," Andy mused, wrapping a strand of dark hair around the curling iron, "Are there going to be boys at this dance?"

It was Friday evening and Andy was over at the Swareks' helping Lindsey get ready for her dance. They were set up in the downstairs guest bathroom, which Lindsey had deemed to have "the best light", and Lindsey was straddling the closed toilet seat as Andy curled her hair.

Lindsey rolled her eyes. "Well I don't go to an all-girls school, so I assume there will be boys there."

Andy smiled sweetly and then tugged sharply on the curling iron, making Lindsey wince. "Watch the 'tude, lady," she warned. "I've got a very hot metal object very close to your head."

"Sorry," Lindsey replied, appropriately contrite. "Yes," she repeated herself without even a hint of sarcasm, "There will be boys there."

"Will there be any special boys there?" Andy gently prodded.

Andy saw the sides of Lindsey's cheeks flush with color but before the girl could respond, Sam appeared in the entrance of the bathroom. "There sure as hell better not be any special boys there," he said, bracing himself on either side of the doorframe.

Andy clicked her tongue behind her teeth. "Sam, language," she chided.

Lindsey let out a burst of laughter. "You should hear him when the Maple Leafs lose." She turned her head around as far as she could and informed Andy, "They suck this year, so trust me, I've heard a lot worse."

"They do not suck this year," Sam said defensively. "They just won over the Senators."

"Oh, please!" Lindsey cried. "You even said that the Senators are the worst team in the whole league."

Andy smiled and remained quiet, enjoying listening to the banter between Sam and his niece. Even as young as she was, Lindsey easily held her own against her uncle.

"It was just what the Leafs needed to get their stride back," Sam claimed. "They're going to be fine."

Lindsey pursed her lips and rolled her eyes, again. "Whatever."

"Back to this dance," Sam said, changing the topic abruptly. "There are going to be special boys there?" Andy turned to Sam and with a hand on her hip. Taking in her irritated expression, he asked innocently, "What?"

"We're having girl talk Sam," she said, gesturing between Lindsey and herself. She pointed at him. "You are not a girl."

Sam smirked and had Lindsey not been sitting there, would have responded with an inappropriate comment. As it was, he simply replied, "Just pretend I am."

Andy and Lindsey exchanged a look in the bathroom mirror and, after a silent agreement, Andy stuck her foot out, kicking the bathroom door closed. Sam jumped back so it wouldn't slam on him and once the door closed they could hear him muttering outside about it being "my own damn house". Andy caught Lindsey's eye in the mirror again and they both dissolved in a fit of giggles.

To his credit, Sam gave the girls their privacy while Lindsey finished getting ready. When she caught her breath, Andy asked her question again, "So… is there a special boy?"

Lindsey blushed and shook her head, "No, no one special."

Andy accepted the answer warily, "Okay."

Lindsey was quiet as Andy put the finishing touches on her hair. It was curled into soft ringlets and Andy pulled half of it back off her face, securing it with a jeweled barrette.

"Turn around," Andy instructed, "So I can do your makeup."

Lindsey obediently faced forward and looked at Andy curiously. "Do you have a boyfriend?"

Andy smiled as she brushed the faintest trace of blush on the apples of Lindsey's cheeks. "Yes, I do. His name is Luke."

"Is he cute?"

Andy nodded, "He's very cute. Close your eyes." Lindsey obeyed and she dusted eye shadow across the girl's eyelids.

"Do you love him?" Lindsey asked, wiggling her eyebrows and grinning.

Andy laughed at how direct the girl was. She shook her head, "We haven't been dating that long yet."

"So you don't love him?" Lindsey concluded, not letting Andy get by with her non-answer.

"I could, one day," Andy said. "But no, not right now. We're still getting to know each other."

Lindsey nodded and then asked, "What does he do?"

"He works with your uncle," Andy answered. "He's a detective."

"You're a police officer too, right?" Andy nodded. "Why don't you work with them?"

"My dad used to work at their division," Andy said. She shrugged and then decided to be honest with the girl. "He made some mistakes, so I thought it would be better to go somewhere else."

"What kind of mistakes?"

Andy hesitated. "Look up," she said. Lindsey did and as Andy applied a thin coat of mascara, she chose her words carefully. "My dad is a really good dad, but he started to drink, a lot. It affected his work and he messed up some important cases because of it."

Lindsey's eyes darkened and she chewed on her bottom lip, deep in thought. "Sometimes its nice to be where no one knows about you."

Andy didn't miss the weight of her words. "Sometimes it is. But you know," she shrugged, "My friends work there. And Luke and Oliver," she paused and added, "And your uncle. They all know about my dad and don't treat me any differently. I think I was worried it would be a bigger deal than it really is."

Lindsey nodded but didn't say anything. There was a stretch of silence but Andy didn't hurry to fill it, knowing that the girl needed time to process what she had said.

She touched some gloss onto Lindsey's lips and then grinned. "Alright," she said, stepping back. "I think you're all done."

Lindsey scrambled to stand up and turned to look in the mirror. She inspected her face and hair carefully and then asked Andy shyly, "Do I look okay?"

Andy smiled and nodded. "You look great," she reassured her. She opened the bathroom door and ushered the girl out. "Now hurry and go get your dress on. Do you need help?"

"No," Lindsey called back, "I'm fine."

Sam was sitting on the sofa and he turned to watch Lindsey head up to her room. Andy cleaned up in the bathroom and then came out and leaned against the door, facing him.

"Good talk?" he asked.

Andy nodded, wondering how much of their conversation Sam had overheard. "Yeah. It was."

"You didn't make her look like a street walker, did you?"

Andy scoffed, offended. "No, I barely used any makeup at all."

"Good," Sam said, standing from the sofa. "Is she almost ready? We've got to get to the Shaw's."

Andy nodded, "She just went to put her dress on."

Sam grunted something unintelligible and walked to the front of the house. Andy followed behind him and they quietly waited for Lindsey in the foyer.

After a while, Sam noticed that Andy had a fond smile on her face. "Why are you smiling like that?" He asked suspiciously.

"Just thinking," Andy replied, still smiling to herself.

He crossed his arms in front of his chest. "About what?"

Andy turned to face him with an impish grin. "My first kiss. I was twelve." She shrugged, "Jacob Roberts and I snuck behind the bleachers at a school dance."

He raised his shoulders and shook his head, annoyed. "Why do you have to tell me things like that?" He groaned and dropped his shoulders. "Not only do I have to worry about her dancing with the little prepubescent punks, I have to worry about her kissing them too?"

Andy just laughed. "You asked. Don't worry though, it was all perfectly innocent."

"Nothing innocent goes on behind the bleachers," Sam countered.

"Well, I don't know what you were doing behind the bleachers," Andy said suggestively, "But Jacob didn't even try to slip me some tongue, so…" she trailed off, raising an eyebrow.

The corners of Sam's mouth pulled downward. "See, now, that's exactly the kind of thing I don't need to think about."

With an amused grin, Andy shrugged and turned around, looking expectantly up the stairs.

Sam cleared his throat. "Where's Callaghan tonight?"

She stiffened. "You know where he is."

"Believe it or not, I don't keep tabs on your boyfriend McNally."

She sighed and then admitted, "He's on surveillance for the Calhoun case."

"Oh," Sam said, feigning naiveté. "By himself?"

"No," she answered tightly, "He and Jo are working it together."

"They spend a lot of time together," Sam commented. "It's a good thing they get along."

"Well," she reminded him, "They are partners."

"They sure are," he replied gamely.

Andy turned to him with fire in her eyes. "You know what?"

"What?" he challenged indifferently.

She narrowed her eyes and tilted her head to the side. "Jacob Roberts did slip me some tongue. He tried to cop a feel, too."

Sam's mouth gaped open and she just smirked at him, thrilled to have rendered him speechless.

"Unnecessary," he finally muttered. "Completely unnecessary."

"So are your thinly veiled, not-so-subtle jabs at Luke," Andy retorted.

Sam raised an eyebrow, "Oh, trust me, I can be far more blunt if you'd prefer."

She was about to reply when they heard a voice at the top of the steps. "I'm ready!" Lindsey called.

Both of their heads whipped around and Andy immediately forgot what she was going to say to Sam and got her camera ready. "Okay! Come on down!"

Lindsey descended the stairs carefully, unsteady on the kitten-heeled shoes she had found to go with her dress. She wore a dark purple, knee-length dress that flared slightly at the hip. There was an intricate bead detail on the bodice that caught the light and the thick shoulder straps were flattering but age-appropriate.

Though she looked beautiful, it was her smile that Andy noticed first. Despite Lindsey's initial reservations about going to the dance, her eyes twinkled and her whole face was lit up with excitement.

Andy quickly snapped a few pictures and then, impulsively, turned to snap one of Sam as well. When she brought the camera down, she took a moment to look at him. His eyes were soft and warm and full of emotion and she could have sworn she him hastily blink back tears.

He caught her staring she just winked at him supportively before turning back to Lindsey.

"So," Lindsey said, twirling when she reached the bottom of the stairs, "What do you think?"

"You look beautiful sweetie," Andy said, going over to hug the girl. "Right, Sam?" She prompted, pulling him out of the daze he had gotten lost in.

Sam swallowed the lump that had unexpectedly risen in his throat and nodded. "Beautiful," he agreed, motioning Lindsey over to him. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pressed a kiss against the top of her head. "You'll be the prettiest girl there."

Andy smiled and found herself getting choked up watching the tender moment. She took a candid picture and then instructed, "Hey you two, turn and look at me." They obeyed her and Andy was pleased to see that Sam even attempted to smile. "Okay, one… two… three…" She took the picture and then quickly checked it on the digital screen. "Perfect."

"Uncle Sam," Lindsey said, untangling herself from under his arm. "Take one of me and Andy."

Andy handed the camera over to Sam and he looked at it hesitantly. "Just push that button right there," Andy said quietly, pointing at the button on the side of the camera.

"Okay," he said, holding the camera out in front of him and squinting at the screen. "On three…"

Andy wrapped her arm around Lindsey and smiled as the flash went off.

Sam lowered the camera and said, "We better get going. We're supposed to be at the Shaw's in fifteen minutes." He looked at Lindsey, "Do you need a coat?"

"Oh hey, wait!" Andy said, hurrying to the small table in the foyer. She held up a large, black pashmina scarf, "I brought this over, I thought you might want to wear it instead of a coat."

Lindsey nodded eagerly and wrapped the material around her shoulders. "I'm ready," She said, "Let's go."

The three exited the house and Sam took a minute to lock the door behind him. Andy waited on the porch until he had finished and then, as he walked by, reached out to grab the sleeve of his shirt, holding him back. "Sam?

"Hmm?" He turned back to her.

Andy waited until Lindsey was at the bottom of the short staircase, out of hearing range, and then leaned in, quietly reassuring him, "Jacob Roberts never tried to cop a feel." She smiled and rubbed her hand down his arm. "Lindsey's going to be fine. This is good for her."

Sam nodded. "I know." He coughed, clearing his throat. "Thanks for your help tonight."

"You're welcome," she replied, looking directly into his eyes to convey her sincerity. He held her gaze and the corner of his mouth twitched with a smile.

He was about to say something but was interrupted when Lindsey called out to him impatiently. "Uncle Sam! Hurry up!" With a small half smile at Andy he turned and hurried to catch up with his niece.

Andy slowly made her way down the steps, tucking her hands under her arms for warmth. She watched as Sam helped Lindsey climb into the passenger's seat and waved goodbye as they pulled out onto the street. She stayed outside until she couldn't see the truck's taillights anymore and then, with a happy sigh, turned to walk back into her house.

It was almost a week later when Andy let out a frustrated sigh, slamming her locker door closed. She closed her eyes and leaned her forehead against the cold metal, taking a moment to breathe and collect herself.

"McNally!" The harsh voice cut through the locker room and Andy sighed again.

"I'm coming," she called, rounding the bank of lockers.

Boyd was waiting to escort her to the staff sergeant's office where she was asked to describe her day in minute detail once again. Andy coolly explained the events leading up to the arrest and then admitted that she had made a terrible mistake and that somehow the suspect she was arresting had gotten away.

Andy hung her head as her staff sergeant reprimanded her. Compared to the acerbic tongue-lashing she had received from Boyd, the lecture was relatively tame and Andy calmly nodded along, apologizing again when he was finished.

When he dismissed them Boyd grabbed a hold of her arm, his fingers digging into her flesh, and hauled her out of the office, muttering disparagingly as they walked. She waited until they turned into an empty hallway and then wrenched her arm away from him. "Let go of me," she said firmly.

"You better get your shit together McNally," he said, pointing a finger in her face. His voice was low and almost sinister. "Come back tomorrow with your head in the game or you will be at the desk for the next month. Do you understand me?"

She set her jaw, willing herself not to cry, and nodded, "Yes sir."

With a final sneer, Boyd stomped off. Andy exhaled heavily and raised her arm, inspecting the bruise that was already starting to form from where he had grabbed her. She shook her head and then walked back to the locker room, more than ready to head home for the day.

Later that same night, Sam stood at the bottom of the stairs and yelled up, "Lindsey!"

A few seconds later he heard her reply, "Yes?"

"Come down here please. Dinner's almost ready."

"I'm coming!"

Sam walked back into the kitchen to finish getting the dinner together and it wasn't long before Lindsey came bounding down the steps and skidded to a stop at the kitchen's entrance.

"Mmm… " she said, jumping up onto one of the stools to sit at the counter, "It smells good."

Sam dramatically clutched at his chest, feigning shock. "Did you just compliment my cooking?"

Lindsey just rolled her eyes and reached out to steal a piece of bacon.

"Uh uh, not yet," he said, slapping her hand away. "I was thinking we should invite Andy over for dinner, what do you think?"

Lindsey thought it over. "Do you think she would come?"

Sam shrugged, "Can't hurt to ask. Go get her," he instructed. At Lindsey's hesitant expression he continued, "Tell her if she keeps eating pizza she's going to get too fat to chase down bad guys."

"You know," Lindsey advised, hopping down off of the stool, "You really should be nicer to her."

Sam eyed his niece. "I am nice to her," he claimed.

Lindsey shook her head. "You could be nicer. She's never gonna date you if you say mean things like that."

Sam coughed, taken by surprise. "Who says I want to date her?"

"Please," Lindsey said. "It's only like, completely obvious."

"Well then, you are obviously mistaken," Sam retorted, "Because I don't want to date her."

"Oh whatever," Lindsey replied, rolling her eyes.

"Hey," he pointed a spatula at her, "Don't be a smartass."

"Andy wouldn't like it if she knew you used that kind of language around me." She smirked and with mock seriousness informed him, "I'm an impressionable child you know."

"Ever heard the expression, 'children should be seen and not heard,'" Sam asked, raising an eyebrow.

Lindsey just glared at him, silent.

"Ah," Sam said, cupping his hand around his ear, "That's so much better." He waved the spatula towards the front door, "Now go get Andy."

"How I am I supposed to do that if I'm silent?" Lindsey asked, mumbling as she walked out of the kitchen. "I guess I'll have to learn sign language on the way over there."

She quickly made her way over to Andy's and knocked on the front door. She only had to wait a minute, maybe less, until Andy threw the door open, cash in hand.

"Oh, hi Lindsey," Andy said, pushing her hair out of her face. "Sorry I was expecting…"

"The delivery guy?" Lindsey guessed.

"Yep," Andy said, smiling sheepishly. "How'd you know?"

"They've accidentally come to our house twice this week," Lindsey explained.

"Sorry about that." Andy leaned against the doorframe. "Hey, how was the dance? I haven't gotten a chance to ask you about it yet."

"It was really fun," Lindsey said with a small smile.

"Great! Oh, I'm so glad," Andy said, genuinely happy for the girl. "And you had a good time with Hannah and her friends?"

Lindsey nodded. "Yeah. She invited me over a sleepover next weekend."

"That'll be fun. So..." she grinned and wiggled her eyebrows up and down, "Did you dance with any boys?"

"Maybe," Lindsey answered shyly, drawing the word out.

Andy noticed the blush that rose to Lindsey's cheeks and she let the poor girl off the hook, knowing she was probably embarrassed about the whole thing. "So," she said, "What's up?"

Lindsey took a deep breath. "My uncle wanted me to invite you over for dinner."

"Oh," Andy's forehead wrinkled, "Well, tell him thank you but I already ordered pizza…"

"He also said to tell you that if you keep eating pizza you're going to get too fat to chase down bad guys."

"Wow." Andy's eyebrows shot up and she blinked. "He said that, did he?"

Lindsey nodded, her lips twitching with a grin.

Andy huffed and then shook her head, "He's really a charmer, isn't he?"

The grin spread fully across Lindsey's face and she shrugged. "He thinks he is."

They were interrupted when the pizza delivery guy skipped up the steps to Andy's house. Andy paid him, telling him to keep the change, and took the pizza box from his outstretched hands.

"Lindsey," she said when he left, "I'm sorry but…"

"Please come over," Lindsey interrupted her quickly. She looked startled by her own outburst but then smiled hopefully at Andy. "If you come over maybe we can convince him to watch something other than sports or the news."

Andy sighed thoughtfully. Luke had been working late almost every night that week and the last thing she'd wanted to do when she got home was cook for one. Truth be told, she was getting tired of pizza. "What are we having?"

"Some kind of pasta something or other," Lindsey answered vaguely. "I'm not really sure."

"Is he a good cook?"

"He's not bad," Lindsey admitted honestly. "And there's bacon."

Andy was silent for a moment, considering her options. She looked down at the pizza box in her hands and then back to Lindsey. "Well, I can't say no to bacon," she declared with a smile. "Let me just go put this in the refrigerator and grab a sweatshirt."

Lindsey grinned and waited for Andy to lock up her house, and then the two made their way back over to Lindsey's. By the time they got there, Sam had already plated the pasta carbonara and they all headed into the living room to eat. With Andy's assistance, Lindsey was able to convince her uncle to relinquish control of the remote. When Lindsey settled on a celebrity gossip show, Sam frowned and sank back into the couch cushions, grumbling unhappily about the trash they allowed TV.

Andy could tell that, despite his multiple protests, he really didn't mind as long as Lindsey was happy.

She smiled to herself as she ate her dinner, once again enjoying the warm atmosphere of Sam's home. She knew that beneath the surface there was incredible hurt and pain, but she admired the effort Sam was putting into making a good, comfortable home for Lindsey.

When he finished, Sam got up from the sofa and headed into the kitchen. Andy quickly ate the last couple of bites of her meal and then followed him, finding him standing at the sink. "Thanks for dinner," Andy said, setting her plate on the counter. "It was really good."

"Well you know, it's easy to impress when my only competition comes from a cardboard box," Sam teased. When he noticed that she didn't seem amused, he softened. "You're welcome."

Andy glanced uneasily around the kitchen. "You want some help cleaning up?"

Sam shrugged. "Only if you want."

"It's the least I can do," Andy insisted. "Put me to work."

Sam held up a dirty plate. "I'll wash," he said, "You rinse."

"I can do that," Andy replied, taking her spot next to him at the sink.

They worked quietly and efficiently for a few minutes before Sam couldn't take it anymore and asked, trying to sound nonchalant, "Callaghan busy lately?"

Andy smiled slightly and shook her head. "I knew you wouldn't last all night without saying something."

Sam raised his soapy hands innocently. "Just making conversation, McNally."

"He's still working on the Calhoun case," Andy told him. "It's been a lot of late nights but I think it's almost over."

Sam "hmmed" and then handed her a plate. She had been unusually quiet that night so he prodded further. "How was your day?" She eyed him warily and he reminded her, "Just making conversation."

Andy sighed, thinking of how truly disastrous her day had been. "It was…" She paused and then ground out, "Fine."

Sam caught the slight hitch in her voice. "Fine?" He questioned, knowing there was more to the story. "Anyone ever tell you that you're a terrible liar?"

She winced. "Okay," she admitted, "It was horrible."

"What happened?" Sam asked, chuckling lightly.

"I got chewed out by my training officer and my staff sergeant," she said, biting her bottom lip. She was surprised when she felt the sting of tears in her eyes. Blinking rapidly to keep them at bay, she acknowledged, "I really screwed up though, it was my fault."

Sam hesitated but then carefully asked, "What'd you do?"

She looked at him uncertainly. The last she wanted was for someone else to think she was an idiot. "I don't know, Sam…"

"I promise, it cannot be any worse than some of the things Epstein's done," he assured her with a genuine smile.

Andy exhaled heavily, but then confessed, "A suspect got away from me while I was arresting him." She pursed her lips and continued, "We lost him somewhere on Bleeker."

Sam raised his eyebrows, "Wow. That is bad."

She groaned and dropped her head, "I know."

"Where was your TO?"

Andy looked up at him, "What do you mean?"

"Where was your TO? He should have been backing you up."

"He was in the car," Andy admitted. "By the time he got there the guy was already gone."

"Huh," Sam said, his brow furrowing. "Well did he go over with you what you did wrong?"

"Oh yeah," Andy replied, nodding. "He was very thorough in his assessment of my ineptitude."

Sam shook his head. "That's not what I meant. I mean did he go over the arrest with you to see why the guy got away?"

"You mean, like, reenacting it?" Andy asked skeptically.

"Yeah, did he show you what you did wrong so it doesn't happen again?"

"No," Andy said, snorting disbelievingly. The idea of Boyd actually imparting helpful, tangible knowledge was laughable. "He didn't do that."

Sam sighed and grit his teeth. He set the rest of the dirty dishes in the sink and then turned to Andy. "Alright, we'll go over it now."

"Oh, no, Sam…" Andy said, shaking her head. "That's not necessary…"

"Andy, it's bad for the city of Toronto to have police officers running around who don't know how to arrest people." He didn't mean it offensively, be she scoffed and clicked her tongue behind her teeth. "Now, your training officer should be the one doing the, you know, training, but apparently he's not doing his job. Lucky for you, you live next door to me and I happen to be very good at my job." Not backing down, he took the plate out of her hand and firmly said, "Let me help you."

Andy studied him for a moment, gauging his sincerity, and then reluctantly accepted with a shaky, "Okay."

"Okay," he nodded decisively. "Tell me what happened."

Andy sighed and leaned back against the counter, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "We got a call about a B&E down on Carlton street. When we got there, the owner of the apartment came rushing out of the building, pointing at a man and yelling that he was the one that robbed her. I got out of the car to pursue on foot and my TO drove around to block off an alley."

Sam nodded, following along.

"I caught up with the guy, tackled him and was getting my handcuffs out to arrest him when he pushed me off of him and ran away."

"So it was something about the way you had him pinned," Sam concluded.

"He was a pretty big guy," Andy said defensively, "Probably two hundred pounds, at least. He just got away from me."

"His weight doesn't matter," Sam said, shaking his head, "You should be able to keep him down." He thought for a moment and then motioned her to follow him. "Come on," he said, walking into the living room.

When he began moving furniture out of the way, Lindsey looked up from the book she was reading and glanced over at Andy curiously. Andy just shrugged in response and asked Sam, "What're you doing?"

"Well," he said, pushing the coffee table to one side of the room, "You're going to show me what you did."

Lindsey perked up. "Do I need to move?" she asked from her position on the couch.

"Nope, you're fine there," Sam replied, waving his hand. To Andy, he instructed, "Okay, arrest me."

Andy raised an eyebrow. "You want me to arrest you?"

Sam looked around the room exaggeratedly. "Is there an echo in here?" His eyes met hers and he asked seriously, "How am I supposed to know what you're doing wrong if you don't show me?"

"I'm not going to arrest you," Andy replied resolutely.

"Why not?" He questioned, walking over to her.

"Because…" Andy said, shaking her head uncomfortably. "I'm just not."

He came to stand in front of her. He eyed her carefully and then reached out, swatting her on the arm.

Andy looked up at him, surprised. "What was that for?"

He did it again. "I just assaulted a police officer," he answered. "You have to arrest me now."

"Okay," Andy said, holding her hands out, "I am not going to arrest you."

"Come on Andy," he persisted. "Everyone makes mistakes, you've just got to learn from them."

He reached out to swat her again, but she caught his arm. "Fine," she agreed with a heavy sigh, releasing him to step back and remove her sweatshirt. "I'll arrest you."

Sam grinned. "Should I be running?" he asked.

"Only if you want it to be realistic," she replied, fixing him with a look.

"Alright," Sam said, guiding her back to the entrance of the living room. "Here we go."

Lindsey let her book fall to her lap, looking on as Sam pretended to run from Andy and Andy tackled him from behind, dropping him right in the middle of the living room.

It was far more entertaining than seventh grade required reading.

Sam fell to the floor with a pained grunt. "Good takedown," he sputtered. "That's obviously not the issue."

"Thank you," Andy said smugly, pulling his arms behind him to pin him.

"Well there's your first problem," he said, looking back behind him and slapping at her arm. "You've got spaghetti arms. You have to keep your arms strong. Second, you have to use your knees to keep me down. See, look," he easily tossed her to the side and stood to his feet. "You're like a feather. Let me show you, get down."

Andy eyed him warily but obediently got facedown on the ground. He dropped to his knees and pulled her arms behind her back. "One knee goes here," he said, pressing one knee onto the top of her back, "And the other goes here," he pressed his other knee into the small of her back.

"Sam," she wheezed, "I can't breathe."

He quickly moved off of her but said, "That's the point. If you can't breathe you can't struggle. Let's go again. Try not to crush the family jewels this time though," he said, standing up. "You never know, some lucky lady may want to help me give Lindsey some cousins one day."

Andy laughed lightly as she pushed herself up, rolling her eyes, while Lindsey's face scrunched up in disgust. "Gross!" she cried, horrified.

Sam just laughed at his niece and then turned his back to Andy. "Try again."

She tackled and pinned him again and again, and each time he would easily slip from her grasp. She listened to his instruction though and eventually was able to secure him to the ground. Sam struggled in her hold but when he couldn't free himself, he relented and relaxed onto the floor. "You got me," he admitted, proud of her.

"Aha, yes!" Andy exclaimed, jokingly pumping her arms in the air, laughing in triumph.

The movement caused her shirtsleeves to ride up and when she brought her arms back down, she noticed that Sam was staring at something intently. She followed his gaze to the harsh purple bruise that marred her upper arm, the perfect outline of a large hand.

He looked at up her, eyebrows raised with alarm, and she could read the assumption in his eyes.

Pulling her sleeve down, she thought quickly. "Hey Lindsey," she said, scrambling to stand, "Could I get that scarf I loaned you last week back?"

Lindsey looked at her suspiciously but agreed, getting up from the couch to go retrieve the item from her room.

Andy waited until she left the room and then turned back to Sam. She could practically feel the intensity radiating off of him and knew he was struggling not to immediately jump to conclusions. His jaw was tight and he was standing with his hands on his hips, one foot slightly in front of the other, waiting for her to explain. "It's not what you're thinking," she promised, holding up her hands.

He didn't respond. Instead, one of his hands went to circle her wrist and the other tugged her shirtsleeve up again so he could inspect the bruise more closely. Andy sighed and half-heartedly tried to pull her arm away, but he wouldn't let her. "Did Callaghan do that?" He asked, his voice steady and controlled.

"No, he didn't," she said, shaking her head, pleading with him to believe her. "I promise, it wasn't him."

Sam took a long, controlled breath. "What happened?"

"It was an accident," Andy tried to tell him.

He cut her off. "People don't accidently grab you hard enough to leave a bruise like that, Andy. Was it someone you were arresting?"

She wanted to nod her head, to lie to him and tell him that it was someone off the street, someone she didn't know. It was probably what she should have done, but the look in his eye warned her not to lie to him.

"No," she admitted truthfully. "It wasn't."

"Who was it?"

"Sam," She said, pulling her arm away. This time he let her. "Can you just not make a big deal about it please?"

"It is a big deal McNally," he stubbornly protested, his volume rising.

"Keep your voice down," she implored him, looking nervously towards the stairs.

He stared at her for a long moment, clenching his fists unknowingly. "Who was it? I'm going to find out eventually and it'd be easier if you would just tell me."

She sighed heavily and looked down at the ground. Irritation prickled up her spine at his audacity, at his arrogant presumption that he was somehow entitled to know what happened and that she should just tell him. She didn't owe him anything. She could feel her hair stand on end and was about to tell him exactly where he could shove his assumptions but then she looked up at saw him standing there and remembered everything he had shared with her, everything he had trusted her with.

Surely she could trust him with this little piece of information.

If she was honest with herself, she wanted to tell him.

"Andy. Tell me."

She sighed again, weighing her decision. "It was my training officer, okay?" she replied quietly. "He just pulled my arm a little too hard. It was an accident."

He crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Who is your training officer?"

Andy was shaking her head, getting ready to tell him she wasn't going to answer that, when they were interrupted.

"Here you go," Lindsey said, holding the scarf out as she walked back into the living room. She looked back and forth between Andy and her uncle, sensing that something was amiss. "What's going on?"

"Nothing," Andy replied a little too easily, taking the scarf from her. "I need to be going though." She quickly hugged Lindsey and then looked back over to Sam. "Thank you for dinner." She smiled shakily, hoping he would just let her leave. "And the lesson."

He clenched his jaw, wanting to ask more questions, but resisted and just nodded sharply. There were plenty of ways he could find out who her training officer was, he didn't need her to tell him. "You're welcome. Goodnight."

"Goodnight," she repeated, "Goodnight Lindsey."

Lindsey returned the farewell and watched as Andy made her exit. She turned back to her uncle and narrowed her eyes accusingly. "What did you do this time?"

AN: Does anyone else miss Oliver? I do! Expect an appearance from him in the next chapter!