Out of the corner of his eye, Severide saw her hike her perfect ass onto the high chair next to him. A whiff of her shampoo mixed with the heat generated from her ride on the bull invaded his nostrils. She smelled delicious. He resisted turning to face her head on. He knew he'd have to prepare himself against the gut punch of seeing her raw beauty up close. He felt her eyeing him, cautiously waiting to see who would strike up the conversation first. When her drink arrived seconds later, Stella turned to him, openly angling her whole body to him as she tossed her long mass of curls over one shoulder and sighed deeply.

"So, Lieutenant. How is this trainee class shaping up to be, really?"

He thought to himself, Work is a safe topic. Can't really go wrong there. Don't necessarily have to face her either while we chat.

"Yeah, this is a good class," he ultimately responded, "You all are working hard and making real progress."

"I bet you tell every class that," she retorted.

With perfect timing, behind them a few other trainees from the class let out loud peals of laughter as they talked among themselves.

"Why aren't you over there with your buddies?"

"No worries. I'll join them in a second. I just wanted to check in on our fearless teacher, first."

She took a long swig of her drink and over-zealously thunked the nearly empty bottle back on the bar top. Averting her eyes and dipping her head a little shyly, her next words came out a bit like a whisper to herself.

"Actually, that's not exactly true. That's not the real reason I came over here."

His breath caught in his throat a little as his heart jumped to conclusions that his mind desperately tried to swat away. He found himself turned toward her mirroring her body language. He was rapt with attention at what she'd say next.

"To be honest, I just needed a moment to myself. I know it was just a silly contest, but I really wanted to win that damn helmet!"

His gaze softened and he smiled softly out of the corner of his mouth at her admission. He didn't know why she was choosing to confide in him her feelings about her loss, but he liked it.

Just twenty minutes earlier, Severide had observed the crowd boo loudly at some bullshit technicality call by the mechanic that deprived Stella of the bull riding record trophy. Stella barely had had the chance to regain her composure after being thrown off the bull when the call was made, and she was peeved. She argued her piece with the mechanic at first, urged on by the supportive crowd, but eventually let it go a few minutes later, not without some choice swears of course, as the crowd lost interest and a new rider stepped up to the bull. She was right, it was a stupid game, but she had thrown herself into the task with 110% effort and heart, just like he often observed on the training floor. He already knew that's what he admired about her; what impressed him about her. Stella would never half-ass any challenge presented to her, and she was kicking all those asses as a female firefighter because of it.

What surprised him in this moment as his stare at her down-turned head intensified was seeing this unexpectedly vulnerable side of her. It was disarming how open she was being and how she seemed to do so unselfconsciously. Yet, despite how she soft she looked just then, he didn't feel like she was asking him to comfort her. In fact, he could sense she would reject it even if he tried. She was just sharing her feelings in that moment; nothing more, nothing less. And no coy feminine games at work, either. It was then he realized that this is what made her so attractive to him: this honest way of living that was so refreshing. And damn near irresistible, he had to admit, especially when combined with the rest of her.

Severide let out his held breath between tense lips as casually as he could while leaning forward to clink her beer bottle. Readjusting himself quickly to maintain the air of professionalism between them, he gave her his best cheerful smile while taking another swig of his own drink and re-assuring her.

"You'll get 'em next time, I'm sure."

Stella's eyes flickered up at him, the utterly vulnerable look already gone and replaced by a steely resolve, and she gave him a grateful side grin.

"I know I will, Lieutenant."

Shaking off the rest of her deep thoughts, she stood up from the chair while signaling to the bartender for another drink. Life of the party Stella was springing back into action.

Severide, however, stayed seated relishing at being privy to the other Stella just moments before. That thought alone warmed his insides in a way he hadn't felt in a long time. But, he should have known that feeling wouldn't last long in the presence of Stella Kidd. Now, as he watched her adjust her skin tight top over her breasts and her equally tight jeans over her ass so everything fit smoothly when standing, it ignited his blood. She didn't even notice since her eyes were following the bartender's movements. His mind reeled at how she was suddenly even more potent that she was just half an hour ago. And that had already felt like too much for him to keep reigned in behind a professional veneer.

As he smirked helplessly to himself, he knew his Irish exit was calling. This latest drink of top shelf Stella Kidd was just one too many.