Sharon opened the door to the house. "Brenda?"
"I'm here. I'm right here." Brenda walked up to Sharon and pulled her into a hug. "Oh my god, Sharon."
"Jesus Christ," Sharon let out a breath and held her tighter, "I'm so glad you're okay. I can't believe I wasn't here; I'm so sorry."
Brenda laughed a little, "that was my fault."
Sharon grinned, nuzzling her hair, "it was, it was all your fault. I was going to say it wasn't but when you slammed Stroh's face into the elevator wall you pretty much guaranteed I wouldn't be home last night."
"An unfortunate side effect, I didn't mean to screw your evening."
"My evening? You were almost killed!" Sharon squeezed her, "I never want to let you go."
"It's over, it's all over. Stroh is going to jail and I can get on with my life." Brenda pulled back and cupped Sharon's cheeks. "We can move on with our life."
"Pope accepted your resignation."
Brenda nodded, "I know. I… accepted the job in the DA's office."
Sharon dropped her arms and paced a little. "Pope and Taylor want to transfer me to Major Crimes."
"Take the transfer."
"Your squad hates me."
Brenda chuckled, "no, iyour/i squad hates you. Take the transfer. They need you to keep them honest. I fell down on that and I almost ruined everyone's lives."
"I just… I haven't been a regular cop in twenty years, I've been in Professional Standards for so long… I don't even know how anymore…"
Brenda took Sharon into her arms again and drew her in for a kiss. Sharon melted into the kiss; Brenda held onto her supportively. When they separated Brenda looked lovingly into her eyes, "let's get married this weekend. Let's fly out to Atlanta tonight and get married on Saturday."
Sharon nodded, "let's do it."
9:45am
"Is Josh really coming?" James looked up from the magazine he was reading. His mother and his sister sat across from him having their hair styled.
"He said he was coming." Sharon shrugged.
"I don't understand the ex-etiquette." Angela admitted, "you invited Josh but not Dad. Brenda invited Fritz but not Will Pope."
"I'm still friends with Josh. Brenda did invite Will Pope but he's the Chief of Police now and it was too short notice, he couldn't take the time. And your father? Well, I just didn't want him to be here. What time is it, James?"
He looked at his watch, "it's only 9:50, we're still on schedule."
"Think the same can be said for Brenda?" Angela laughed.
"I know… I don't know why I left Charlie and Andy Flynn in charge of keeping her on schedule. She'll show up to the photo shoot half-baked and reeking of gunpowder."
"You paint a beautiful picture of your bride, ma."
Sharon smiled. "She is beautiful… she's smart and she's a person you really want to have on your side."
"Okay, okay, don't get mushy. There'll be plenty of time for that later." Angela chided, "we need to stay on task. James, give us the schedule of events again?"
He dug into his pocket and pulled out the itinerary which had been folded up and stuck unceremoniously into his pocket along with two sticks of gum, his keys and a receipt from TGI Fridays. "10:30 pick up mom and Angela's dresses and my tux, 11:00 get back to the Johnsons' and get dressed and have a snack, 11:30 meet up with Brenda and company in the park for photo sesh, free time, 12:30 fix any last minute problems and ceremony to begin promptly at 1:00. Then from 1:30 on we eat, drink and be merry."
"And until one I'm supposed keep my hair from frizzing in Atlanta heat?"
The hair dresser chuckled, "girl, you've got so much hairspray in your hair you'll need a chisel to let it down again."
10:33am
Brenda took another large bite out of her hostess snack cake as Charlie continued to French Braid her hair.
"How can you do it? How can you give up the badge?" Andy asked, shaking his head. "I've been going over it in my mind… and it can't just be because of the reprimand. I've got, like, eight and I'm still a cop… I always will be."
"It's about priorities." Brenda shrugged. "I didn't have time for the people that are important to me. I'll have the time now. I can't fix the things that I did wrong but I can do it right from here on out."
"And I can come visit more often?" Charlie looked up with a sweet smile.
"Uh… we'll talk to your daddy about that, okay?"
"But you're moving to the DA's office… doesn't that make you feel dirty?"
"What's so bad about the DA's office?" Charlie looked to Andy.
"Brenda, how have you let this kid get so misguided? Charlie, the DA's office – well, all lawyers, actually – are bureaucratic assholes."
"Language, Andy." Brenda scolded.
"I'm 19, Aunt Brenda."
"You basically can't ask them any questions without having to clarify and not use vague language because, heaven forbid, everyone isn't as annoying and nitpicky as they are."
Charlie tied off Brenda's hair with a cream colored ribbon. "You know that Sharon's daughter is a lawyer, right? And almost all of Sharon's friends?"
Andy threw his hands up in defeat, "it's hopeless. You've gone to the dark side."
11:15am
"Ange, will you zip me?"
Angela pulled the zipper up and Sharon turned around and smiled. "Angie! Don't cry!"
"You just look so beautiful and so happy…"
"Angie…" Sharon cooed, wrapping her arms around her.
"How's everything – oh god, what's wrong?" James entered the room.
"I'm beautiful and happy and apparently that makes your sister sad." Sharon teased. Angela laughed, pulling back.
Sharon grabbed a tissue and gently wiped away the errant tears. "I'm happy you're happy."
Sharon nodded, "I know, that means a lot to me." Sharon smiled and sighed.
"Hey, Sharon," Charlie called, entering the room. "Do you want to check Aunt Brenda before we go… shit, you guys look amazing!"
"I can do a quick updo for you, if you'd like." Angela offered.
Charlie smiled broadly, "okay."
Sharon slipped out of the room and across the hall. Brenda caught sight of Sharon in the mirror and she turned and smiled. "You look…"
"I know, I know," Sharon laughed, "I'm ravishing."
Sharon leaned down, hands on the chair's arms. "Your mother's dress looks wonderful on you." She whispered and smiled. "And the diamond earrings I gave her for our first Christmas."
"I thought it would be a nice touch." She reached up and touched them. "Are you freaking out yet?"
"Kind of." Brenda admitted. "You?"
"I don't know, I think I'm holding it together."
Brenda grinned, "you're much better at holding it together than I am."
Sharon nodded, "definitely." She kissed Brenda softly, being mindful of their makeup. "Are you ready to go get our pictures taken?"
12:55pm
"There you are." Provenza groused as Flynn took the seat next to him. "I've been surrounded by lawyers for an hour and a half."
Flynn smoothed out his tie as he made himself comfortable in the white wooden chair. "Where's Tao and Julio?"
"Tao's cutting it close, his wife didn't get off her shift until this morning. Julio's been laying the groundwork with one of Raydor's cousins."
"What about you? There are some lookers on Raydor's side, anyone you have your eye on?"
Provenza crossed his arms and pouted stubbornly. "No."
The Taos sidestepped down the aisle and took their seats on the other side of Flynn. "Right under the wire, guys." Flynn smiled.
"Flights are always delayed when you're on a schedule." Cathy smiled, giving Flynn a hug. "Did we miss anything?"
"Nah, the show's about to start." Flynn looked over at Provenza who was still scowling like a gargoyle on the Notre Dame. Flynn punched Provenza in the shoulder and Provenza glared. "Be a sport, would you? You are at a ilesbian wedding/i. When are you going to have that opportunity again?"
Provenza nodded, "true."
The music started up and everyone stood. Angela walked down first and took her spot on Sharon's side. Then Sharon with James on her arm walked down the aisle. James kissed his mother's cheek and then took his spot behind his sister. Charlie went next and took her spot on Brenda's side.
Sharon's heart started to pound and a smile spread across her face as Brenda started down the aisle with Clay.
Brenda made it down the aisle, kissed Clay's cheek and took her spot. Brenda took Sharon's hands.
"Sharon… my Sharon, my Captain." She smiled. "I love you. You've stuck by my side through thick and thin, and I know I don't always make it easy. You keep me on my toes, you keep me honest; and when you can't, you keep me in chocolate. You're my best friend, and I want to spend the rest of my life making sure you know how much I love and appreciate you."
Angela handed Sharon the ring and she slipped it onto Brenda's finger. "Brenda, I love the chaos you bring to my life. You remind me not to take myself too seriously. You make me laugh when I don't think there's anything to smile about; you make me happy when I think everything is going wrong. You are always exactly what I need and I love you with my whole heart."
Charlie handed Brenda the ring and she slid it onto Sharon's finger. Sharon wrapped her arms around Brenda and kissed her which elicited applause. Brenda tightened her grip on Sharon, deepening the kiss, feeling Sharon smiling against her.
1:28pm
"Would you unzip me?" Brenda said finally after trying in vain to do it herself. "It's just out of reach…"
"Don't twist your arms like that," Sharon scolded, easily slipping the zipper down. "You'd rather push your arm out of its socket than ask for help?"
Brenda turned around, the dress slipping loosely to her waist and cupped Sharon's cheeks, pulling her in for a kiss. Sharon deepened the kiss, wrapping her arms around her tightly.
When they broke for air Sharon pulled back a little, "everyone's waiting for us."
"There's an open bar. Let 'em wait."
Sharon grinned, "oh, well, when you put it that way…"
1:43pm
"Hummingbird Heartbeat or I Want Candy for when they walk in?" Angela approached her brother with Charlie in tow.
"Sweet Cherry Pie, obviously, it has a way more epic intro."
"More epic than I Want Candy?" Angela demanded incredulously. Angela rolled her eyes and threw up her hands, "you guys are hopeless. I'm just going to put it on random and whatever happens happens."
James reached for the iPod and Angela slapped his hands. "Don't touch my iPod."
He pouted at his sister, rubbing his hand. "I'll go be lookout…" He said with indignation.
Angela kept her eyes on James and when he turned to her and nodded Americano by Lady Gaga started playing "iI met a girl in East L.A. In floral shorts and sweet as May…/i" as Brenda and Sharon walked in.
Angela looked at Charlie nodded, "I can live with that!"
"Hell yeah!" Charlie cheered as they high-fived.
Sharon left Brenda in the middle of the dancing area with a promise to be right back. She whispered in Angela's ear and then rejoined Brenda.
"This is the most romantic thing I'm ever going to do so brace yourself." Sharon teased, wrapping her arms around Brenda.
a href=" watch?v=5sQeQC4hT10" target="_blank"Ingrid Michaelson's cover of Can't Help Falling In Love/a started playing and Brenda laid her head on Sharon's shoulder. "You sap." She grinned playfully. Brenda gave her a little squeeze and whispered, "I love it."
Brenda laid her head on Sharon's shoulder and her eyes fluttered shut.
2:15pm
"Can I get a champagne?" Brenda asked the bartender.
Andy approached, "hey Chief," he saluted her with his glass of sparkling cider. "Great ceremony - everything's really beautiful."
"Thanks. Angela and Charlie got pretty much everything set up. Maybe Angela should quit the law and join up with Charlie as weddin' planners."
"What are you looking at?" He turned around and then back to Brenda.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean in the last two minutes you've looked behind me at least 10 times."
Brenda sighed, "Sharon's dancing with Josh Lewis and that's okay because he's her oldest friend and he's a very nice guy and I trust Sharon implicitly…"
"Oh, yeah, I can tell by the way you keep staring at them." Andy laughed.
The bartender handed Brenda the champagne and she accepted it, sipping it.
"Congratulations on your promotion." Josh smiled.
"Well, it's not really a promotion; it's a lateral move." Sharon shrugged.
"You're being too modest. It's a really good lateral move." He chuckled, "of course, if you'd stuck with law then you would easily be making six figures."
"Yeah, doing what? Helping rich people stay rich?" She shook her head, "no, I'm happy just where I am. Plus, I'm pretty sure you're up to your ears in Raydors over there anyway."
"You might be right about that."
"Hey Josh," James approached, "mind if I cut in?"
"Oh, by all means." Josh gave Sharon's shoulders a squeeze and kissed her cheek. "Congratulations again, I'm happy for you."
"Thank you." After Josh walked away she smiled at James, "to what do I owe this pleasure?"
"Your woman's about to have a hernia." James spared a glance at Brenda who was noticeably relieved that Josh now had his hands off Sharon. "Figured I'd put her out of her misery."
"Josh is one of my oldest friends."
"I know."
"And we were only together twice – it was never serious, just physical."
"Mom!" James protested, his hands going to his ears.
"I'm not a nun, James." Sharon laughed. "Hey, where are you going?"
Brenda approached, "what are you doing?"
"Torturing my son." Sharon grinned mischievously. She wrapped her arms around Brenda's waist. "What are you doing?"
"Dancing with the most beautiful woman on the planet – don't tell my wife."
"My lips are sealed."
3:45pm
Sharon sat at the table surveying the backyard full of friends and family. She actually did it. She married Brenda Leigh Johnson. In the loosest definition of the word, of course, considering it wasn't legally binding yet, but still, she'd done it. She watched Brenda chatting with her boys and smiled.
They'd certainly miss her and she'd miss them. That was a challenge for another day.
Brenda caught Sharon's eye and smiled back. She excused herself and walked up to Sharon. "I didn't mean to make you end your conversation."
"I was missing you anyway."
"You're going to be so sick of me before too long." Sharon teased, leaning in and kissing Brenda's lips softly.
"Yeah, yeah. If I'm not sick of you yet it's probably not going to happen." Brenda reached across and took Sharon's champagne glass.
"Hey," Sharon chuckled.
4:15
Clay picked up his glass and clanked the spoon against it until he had everyone's attention. "I just want to say how happy I am to have everyone here. When Brenda Leigh was young and I envisioned the person who would be right for her I always pictured someone who would challenge her and help her see another perspective. I pictured someone who would help ground her but allow her to be herself. I pictured someone with a good heart and a strong will, someone patient and loyal. And as long as I'm being honest, I pictured someone who would watch the Super Bowl with me."
Brenda took Sharon's hand and gave it a squeeze.
"I didn't know that the person I pictured for Brenda Leigh was going to be a iwoman/i but Sharon is everything I pictured for my baby girl and more. I am so glad that you've been in all of our lives, Sharon, I love you."
"I love you too." Sharon said with tears in her eyes.
Once the party resumed Flynn approached the two women. "So, what's next for you two?" He took a swig of his ginger ale.
"A couple of days rest here and then back to LA. Maybe take a little vacation after we get settled in our new positions."
Flynn watched Brenda for a few silent moments. "Did you say ipositions/i? iPlural/i?"
Brenda turned bright red and Sharon closed her eyes with a cringe. "Did I-" Brenda stuttered, "did I say ipositions/i?"